


Found Family

by kissxsleep



Series: Newmore Family [3]
Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: 2nd book, BITTIES, Damn, F/M, I'm way too in love with this au XD, bitties everywhere
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-04
Updated: 2016-12-28
Packaged: 2018-09-06 12:07:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 30
Words: 93,287
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8750212
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kissxsleep/pseuds/kissxsleep
Summary: Olivia Newmore- the third daughter of Clara and Daniel Newmore- finds herself in a changing Grayridge trying to move forward on her own for once. This story is her struggle as she grapples with parts of herself she prefers to keep from others with the help of her bitties, her skeleton best friend, and a new ally she never expected.





	1. Olivia Newmore

**Author's Note:**

> Full Disclaimer:  
> Underatle was created by Toby Fox.
> 
> The Bitty Bone Au was created by @fucken_crybaby on tumblr. The bitty bone au can be found at http://bittybones-au.tumblr.com/
> 
> Buttonberries were created by Buttontale which can be found at http://button-tale.tumblr.com/
> 
> Blakes were created by TheRedWolfGamer who can be found at http://theredwolfgamer.deviantart.com/#
> 
> I created Atlantic and Tinsel. Tinsel is actually an adoptable now :)  
> *This will be updated once new bitties are introduced*
> 
>  
> 
> Sooooo....  
> Livvy time! I ended up hyping myself for this, so here we are! This is more of a sneak peek in what to expect because I still need to get a solid outline (and write out the next few chapters), but I figured I'd post this now to let you guys get a taste of what's to come.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Full Disclaimer:  
> Undertale was created by Toby Fox.
> 
> The Bitty Bone Au was created by @fucken_crybaby on tumblr. The bitty bone au can be found at http://bittybones-au.tumblr.com/
> 
> Buttonberries were created by Buttontale which can be found at http://button-tale.tumblr.com/
> 
> Blakes were created by TheRedWolfGamer who can be found at http://theredwolfgamer.deviantart.com/#
> 
> I created Atlantic and Tinsel. Tinsel is actually an adoptable now :)
> 
> @undertaleaufactory created Sleepy Sans (Which I've shorthanded to just Sleepy as a bitty type to make my life a little bit easier) You can find him and more bitties at http://undertaleaufactory.tumblr.com/
> 
> The Undyne and Alphys bitties that briefly appear in this (who are destined to reappear in a spin off) were created by SeptraGirl (Rajani_the_Freak here on AO3) on deviant art. You can find her and her bitties at http://septragirl.deviantart.com/
> 
> Sooooo....  
> Livvy time! I ended up hyping myself for this, so here we are! This is more of a sneak peek in what to expect because I still need to get a solid outline (and write out the next few chapters), but I figured I'd post this now to let you guys get a taste of what's to come.

              A person’s family can build them up or tear them down- intentionally and unintentionally. This ability most deeply affects younger children who can never measure up to their older, often more skilled or talented siblings. It can leave some people completely crushed, or it can leave them like me- a smiling husk desperately searching for something to be uniquely my own.

              I’m Olivia Newmore, the youngest daughter of the Newmore sisters, and I’m nowhere as well-known as my old sisters- a pair of twins named Josephine and Nadia. Even my own parents seemed to forget I existed. Josephine and Nadia insist that it was my parents’ greed that turned their attention elsewhere.

              I’ve known this to be untrue for a long time.

              Josephine- the black sheep of the family- held more of their attention than I ever did. Her defiance of their wishes often angered them, but my parents knew that they could use her talents for their own ends. Talent is the one thing that Josephine has _always_ been naturally blessed with. If it can be done with her hands, she can more than likely figure out. She became Grayridge’s resident web designer, graphic designer, master painter, and queen of other crafts for a reason after all. All it takes a little spark for her to create a blaze that will enrapture those around her.

              Nadia- the oldest, broken sister- acted as our parents’ heir for a period of time. Her negotiation skills, sterling reputation, and quick mind allowed her to take a business’s status quo, tweak it, and _quadruple_ its earnings. For a long time, she was their star daughter capable of and willing to do anything they asked her to. Nadia’s strengths outshined her weaknesses and made her Grayridge’s resident money making prodigy. Even after she lost her position as the CEO of the Newmore Company’s sister company, she had other job offers begging at her feet.

              Last year had been a crazy time for _both_ of them. A lot of personal conflicts had come to a head after the two adopted bitties- small little creatures that resembled some of their monster counterparts. These bitties did what I thought was impossible. They healed or began to heal my broken sisters. The battered black sheep could smile without a care in the world. The broken songbird was on a path that would lead to her restoration. The bitties did what I couldn’t. They could be helpful. They managed to accomplish in less than a year what I’d been trying to achieve for twenty years! Needless to say, that fact stung quite a bit.

              Now both of my sisters were on their own two feet, pushing through life to find their happy endings. Nadia gave up the son she had with ex-husband to Josephine and moved to Greenridge for a fresh start. Josephine brought together a little family of bitties and monsters that have shown her just how special she is. They were exceeding all expectations. They had a feast of opportunity at their fingertips, and they were going to take as much of it was they possibly could.

              This just another thing that set me apart from them.

              I was the blend of their talent and skill, but I lacked true mastery of those features and desperately needed something to set me apart from them. I was the third star that stood right by my sisters- always within the picture, just a little bit behind them. I was always ignored though. Compared to their brilliance I was just a glow in the dark star some kid glued to their ceiling to be cool. I was average even among the rest of my Mother’s side of the family. All of my cousins had some talent or skill that set them apart from the rest. All of my relatives were capable of doing so much with so little effort.

              It made me wonder why I tried sometimes.

              Even as an adult, I still leaned heavily on my Sissy- Josephine- for support and guidance. She’d been the mother I otherwise wouldn’t have had, but at the same time she was on a pedestal I couldn’t even begin to climb. She was extraordinary, an outlier. I was just average. Every facet of my personality had been influenced by her or Nadia in some way. Nothing about me was _me_.

              Why do shadows crave the light? We can’t stand in it. We can’t shine.

              **_Why?_**

              “MAMA!” A small figure jumped onto my back, giggling the entire way. I flailed a bit on my bed when the shock startled me from my foggy half-asleep, half-awake thought process, “good morning my Magnificent, Majestic Mother!”

              I angled my head over my shoulder to look at my adorable little bitty- a baby blue I had named Hiro. He wore a simple soft pink shirt and a pair of brightly colored pajama bottoms. As always, a large, happy grin covered his face.

              “Good morning Hiro.” My voice was husky with sleep. Clearing my throat a few times, I tried my best to make it sound less rough, “Am I running behind?”

              “Nope. You’re sick remember?” My lanky Lil’ Bro, Harley, sauntered on up next to me smoking a bitty cigarette. He was shirtless, so I could see the faint cracks on his spine that he still refused to explain, “He just got impatient.” Harley sat down by my head and began to run his fingers through my long, platinum blonde hair, “How’s your fever doing?”

              _Oh right._ I suddenly felt the slight throb from my sinus congestion begin to turn into a full blown headache. _I got a cold._

              “I’m starting to feel it now.” I sighed, “…Did I bathe last night?”

              “no.” Hiro shook his head, “are you strong enough to bathe mother? you were so very weak yesterday. it broke my brave heart to see.”

              “I’m sorry.” I reached back and rubbed Hiro’s skull, “I am feeling better though. A nice, warm bath will help with the fever too.”

              “Take it slow.” Harley stood up, “ _Really_ slow. I catch you if you stumble like your sister’s overpowered edgy.”

              That was something that did always seem to bother Harley. Ever since Waltzer and Blake- my sister’s sansy and blake- revealed that her edgy Raze was around twenty times stronger than he pretended to be, Harley had been trying his best to match Raze’s power level. My Lil’ Bro wasn’t particularly fond of the taller, grumpier bitty at all, and Raze wasn’t fond of him either. Their simmering aggression towards each other often forced Waltzer and Blake to separate them if I was visiting Sissy and my nephew Greyson- who was technically Nadia’s son, but Sissy adopted him. Still, I knew a little more than Harley did. Bitties grew stronger when their magic was forced to recover from injury. That was why my sister’s meek Snuggle could heal human-sized lethal wounds, and Raze’s powerful abilities came from his past in a bitty fighting ring. Harley craved power to protect me. I didn’t want it to come at the cost of his physical health however.

              “I will.” I promised him, “Hiro, sweetie, can you get off my back? I don’t know how steady I’m going to be getting up.”

              Hiro scrambled off of my back. He and Harley watched with pained expressions as I struggled to get up with all of the snot in my head throwing off of my balance.

              “Has Papyrus already left to go open the restaurant?” I asked, trying my best to keep my legs from trembling.

              “mmhmm! he left you some medicine.” Hiro hurried over to a glass of water and some pills, “he hopes you feel better soon, but he’ll bravely keep chez newmore up and running while you recover!”

              “He also asked that you take your time.” Harley’s orange magic raised the pills and glass to my hands, “He’s not as inexperienced as he used to be.”

              Papyrus really was one of the best things that had happened to me. After my sister, with money given to her by Granny, gave me enough money to start my own restaurant, I quickly went to work to bring to life the only real dream I had. It combined my weaker business skills that Nadia’s honed to be similar to hers and my not as perfect cooking skills that Sissy had encouraged since I was small. My biggest issue had definitely been being unable to find a trustworthy second chef that had the same kind of passion I did. Then Sissy brought Sans and Papyrus into my life. Now, she was dating and living with the older, shorter skeleton, and I was working and living with the younger, taller one.

              Papyrus and I had the kind of platonic chemistry that only happens once in a life time. Both of us were younger siblings that had to deal with their older ones being superior to them. My reasons were obvious. Papyrus reluctantly told me bits and pieces of his past and facts about his brother. The one thing about his brother that infuriated him was his nihilistic attitude and laziness because Papyrus _knew_ that Sans could’ve easily become something great if he just pushed himself. Sans had- from what Papyrus told me- always been more liked by the rest of the underground and his combat skills and scientific knowledge were only matched by a handful of people. Sans never capitalized on his strengths, and that drove Papyrus- someone desperate for acknowledgement and acceptance- up the wall.

              Somehow, despite his inner struggles, Papyrus remained and optimistic fellow with hopes and dreams that weren’t as tainted by his jealousy as mine were. I opened the restaurant as a final “Look at what I can do! Can my sisters do this!?” while he genuinely was guided down this path by his friends and family that wanted to see him grow past his insecurities. I wished I could be as kind and compassionate as he was without the bitterness inside me eating away at my conscience.

              “I envy him so much.” I sighed fondly, “I should be taking notes.”

              “Huh?” Harley questioned. Hiro just cocked his head.

              “Nothing.” I giggled a little bit. The soft sound and motion made my head hurt worse, “Could one of you go get the bath started please?”

              “i shall do it!” Hiro raised his hand up excitedly.

              “Thanks.” I smiled at him.

              Harley gave me a concerned look as the younger bitty went to go start up the bath.

              “Harley, could you had me my phone? I want to call Sissy.” I was still a bit too dizzy to do much bending.

              “Sure.” Harley grabbed my phone and rubbed his hands together to make his hands warm enough for the phone to pick his touches up. He quickly turned on the phone and pulled up my contacts. My phone was calling Sissy when he handed it me.

              “hello?”

              _That is not my Sissy’s voice._

              “Sans?” I still couldn’t hear the difference between Waltzer and Sans over the phone, so my guess was random.

              “oh, hey olivia.” He yawned, “did you need something?”

              “I was trying to call my Sissy. Did she leave her phone at home?”

              “she and grey are asleep actually.” Sans’s voice softened some. I could only assume he as probably looking at my sister and the sleeping three month old from a slight distance, “he’s got a rash, so the two of us were up all night last night….”

              I knew he didn’t know how to ask if there was any way to avoid waking her up.

              “Well, could you give her a message when she wakes up?” I scratched the side of my head.

              “sure thing.” A soft sigh of relief barely reached me through the phone.

              “Nadia should be visiting sometime soon, so Granny, who will also be by this month, wants all of us to eat together some time. I don’t know exact dates and times though.”

              “okay. i’ll her know.”

              “Thanks.” I smiled happily, “Of course, you can come too Sans. I’ll probably end up dragging Papyrus along.”

              “a little family dinner would be nice.” Sans chuckled, “we’d let you guys have to deal with the whiny baby for once.”

              “I’m always willing to-“ I sneezed loudly. It was hard enough that Harley edged forward a little bit just in case I fell, “- babysit.”

              “not while you’re still sick as a dog.”

              “How did you-“

              “i can hear the snot in your lungs. have you taken some medicine? newmore’s going to flip when she hears, but we can’t risk grey getting sick....soooo….please take good care of yourself. for her sake.” Sans paused, “and pap’s too. he’s probably beside himself with worry.”

              “I will. Jeez. You’ve already gone full dad on all of us.” I snorted. I quickly regretted doing that because it caused a coughing fit.

              “you newmore girls seem to not take care of yourselves well, so that leaves outsiders like pap and i to fret about you for your own sake.” A loud clatter made me pull the phone a way. Grey started crying, “ah shit, dammit flowey, hey, gotta go. i’ll give newmore the message….after we fix whatever the hell the weed just broke and calm grey down.”

              “Oka-“ Sans hung up, “Bye Sans.”

              “Did something happen?” Harley took my phone from me and sat it back down on my nightstand. Then he teleported to walk beside me.

              “Apparently Flowey broke something…or…well…something.” I shrugged, “I couldn’t really tell what was going on.”

              “Hmm…”

              The two of us began the slow journey to the bathroom I shared with Papyrus. The tub had mostly filled by the time that we got into the bathroom.

              “mama.” Hiro beamed upon seeing me, “the bath is mostly ready.”

              “Thanks Hiro.”

              Eventually, I managed to get myself reclining back in the relaxing bath. Harley dozed sleepily using the dry part of my shoulder as a pillow while Hiro splashed around chasing the loofah that wandered away from my hand. The warm waters really did my head some good. It did make me snot up a bit more, but it was better for that gunk to get out of my head than stay in.

              The warm waters reminded me of my childhood.

              The nanny our parents kept around because she was really cheap didn’t really do her job at all, leaving Sissy to pick up the slack. That meant that every time I was sick, Sissy would have to miss school to take care of me. This even happened during her college years. She never fell behind in class though, and she continued to grow as an artist. Really, she was closer to superhuman than average.

              _“Here baby boo.” Josephine’s hands carefully placed a cool, wet rag over my eyes. My stomach hurt, and my head felt like someone had taken a sledgehammer to it, “Is the medicine starting to kick in?”_

_I shook my head ever so slightly._

_“I’ll call Granny okay?” I didn’t need to see her to know what she was planning. At the age of 13, she’d had taken me to the doctor’s office a lot. They’d call my parents to inform them I was sick before beginning treatment, but all of the at home care fell on her shoulders, “Just remember that this small trashcan is here if you start feeling queasy again.”_

_I felt her begin to move away. That scared my young mind. I didn’t want to be alone. Weakly, I reached out for anything of her to grab onto. The instant my hand latched onto hers, I refused to let go. Sissy ultimately had to sit there and soothe me until I fell asleep before she could get up to call Granny._

              It was ridiculous to call the fears of my younger self selfish, but I felt a bit of guilt none the less.

              I owed her everything. I just didn’t know how to repay her…..

              “mama?!?” Hiro paddled over to me and rubbed at my face. The revelation that I was crying made me blink, “are you alright? does your head hurt too much?”

              “Mom?” Harley sat up.

              _I hate how little Harley will tell me about his past, but here I am keeping my own pain far away from them._ I chuckled maliciously at my own pathetic misery. _If that isn’t hypocritical, I don’t know what is._

              “I was just thinking about somethings.” I rubbed my face, “That’s all.”

              “sad things?” Hiro pouted up at me. He hated not being able to protect me from my own mind.

              “Yes, sad things, but it’s no big deal. I have you two after all.” I gathered my two bitties up in my hands and pressed gentle kisses to the tops and sides of their heads. The two laughed at me a little bit before pressing kisses of their own against my cheeks.

              To most of Grayridge, I was the sunny Newmore sister that didn’t have the skills or talents of her family.

              To Josephine and Nadia, I was someone that needed to be protected, guided. I was their younger sister who couldn’t stand on her own.

              To my own mind, I was a pale imitation that secretly hated other’s happiness because I knew that I would never be able to reach that on my own.

              Was it weak to lean on others? What if they weren’t strong enough to handle it?

              _Jojo did, and now she’s as happy as she’s ever been._

              Josephine had the advantage of being naturally talented however.

              _Nadia’s only leaning on one person- Cesar._

              She was still recovering from the combined abuse of our parents and her ex-husband, Edgar.

              “Mom?” Harley’s hand rubbed my cheek lovingly, “I love you.”

              “i love you more!” Hiro declared. Harley shot him an exasperated look, but let it slide since Hiro was well…Hiro.

              Humans, monsters, and bitties were fragile things. We never knew what life or karma or fate would throw our way, and some people broke under the pressure. We were all social creatures because there was no way for one person to stand against a hurricane, but…. _UGH._

_I hate this uncertainty. Why can’t I be as sure of what as I want as they are?_

              Certainty. Certainty was the one thing I wanted in my life. I wanted to be certain everything I did was for good. I wanted to be certain I wasn’t making mistakes.

              There was only one part of my life that was certain however.

              “I love you both the mostest!” I snuggled them close to keep them from noticing how fake my smile was. _Enough! No more depressing morning drama! My life is going so good right now. I should be focusing on making it even better._ Forcing my problems to the back of my mind tended to work, but they did often cause periods of melancholy if I didn’t address them at some point, “Oh… I think the medicine is kicking in!”

              “yay!” Hiro beamed.

              “Good. You should still rest though.” Harley patted my neck, “Pap left some soupy spaghetti for you to eat.”

              “I can always count on him can’t I?” Again, that familiar warm fondness for the tall skeleton I felt made me smile, “He’s such a good friend.”

              _And I need to be just as good! No more moping. I need to get better so we can get the business booming!_

              I would figure my life out. I _would._

              …..

              Eventually.


	2. An After Dinner Surprise

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I own nothing (Except Tinsel and Atlantic) Full disclaimer can be found in Ch1
> 
> Sooooo....another thing will be posted tonight. BTW, for anyone who's interested in a behind the scenes thing for Patchwork, I have a little BTS trivia thing on my tumblr (it's just kissxsleep. If you find Tinsel & Atlantic adoptables, you've found it)

              Despite around four months passing since the Monster Rights Bill had passed, anti-monster humans were still grumbling about it. They had become less physical due to the extreme police crackdown, but that didn’t mean that people weren’t still voicing their opinions. Typically, they did it in the loudest, most disrespectful way possible. I mostly ignored all of the verbal abuse my restaurant was getting online. I couldn’t control that after all. The internet was a free speech platform for everyone to speak freely, and I’d never advocate for them to be silenced. Dialogue is necessary to establish a connection after all.

              _However_ , as a business owner, I could _not_ tolerate abusive anti-monster sentiment in my kitchens.

              My restaurant had a staff that included monsters and humans from all works of life. I had everyone from an ex-school teacher down on her luck to an ex-con that needed a job to avoid the streets. I also had a kind snake monster waitress that always got massive tips because of her stellar performances, and a small, yellow fire ball for a sous chef that consistently brought in good reviews. Not everyone got along in the front and back. That would happen no matter what. Different opinions on politics, religion, and so on would lead to debates. I made sure to monitor these debates- keeping everyone on track and keeping everything civil- to avoid fist fights.

              What this little bitch was doing was _not_ a civil if strident debate.

              “Hey!” The woman snarled slamming a plate against one of the counters hard enough to crack it a bit, “Skeleton jackass-“ _Did she just insult my Papyrus?_ “This is the _third_ order you’ve gotten wrong! They wanted it done medium rare!’

              “THE TICKET SAYS WELL DONE.” Papyrus protested gently, tugging up the ticket for the meal, “SEE?”

              “Oh so your inability to cook is _my_ fault now.” The woman spat, “Who the hell hired you huh? Stupid monsters. The lot of you are all so fucking stupid it’s a wonder you even managed to survive in the Underground for so long. Why don’t you do all of us and the boss a favor and walk right on out of here?”

              _This **bitch** is trying to make my Papyrus walk? _

              “Funny!” I forced a loud laugh out. Everyone else in the kitchen- who had grown tense upon the waitress storming into the kitchen- looked towards me, “Because that was the advice I was about to offer you.”

              “H-Huh?” The woman looked confused.

              “GET OUT!” I roared, “ _Out_ of my kitchen! NOW! Never come here again- even as a customer. You will _not_ sit here and blame Papyrus for your incorrect ticket- especially since it seems you only give _him_ bad tickets, so _shoo!_ ”

              The woman dared to look insulted.

              “You’d side this freak over humans? It’s one thing to have to hire them because now they have ‘rights’, but-“

              “But nothing!” I snapped, “Get out, or I will remove you myself.”

              “Like you could.” The woman rolled her eyes.

              I put down the food I was plating and popped my knuckles. Unlike Josephine, I didn’t have a reputation for being violent, but she made sure to show me how to throw a decent punch.

              The woman backed down immediately. She cursed the entire way out though.

              “Honestly.” I sighed returning to my station, “Rosie, call Damon. See if he can cover for that bitch until I find a new waiter or waitress.”

              “Yes chef.”

              _Josephine will be proud when she hears about this. Sans will probably be very happy too._

              “LIVI?” Papyrus called out to me.

              “Yes Pap?”

              “…THANK YOU MY MOST WONDERFUL FRIEND!” His smile was almost blinding.

              “Anything for you Papyrus.” I smiled back, “Now, time to finish up this dinner shift, so we can go our own dinner!”

              Papyrus and I were closing the restaurant early to go to the dinner with Nadia, Sissy, Granny, and whoever else the brought along with them. It was a Tuesday, so we weren’t exactly going to boom anytime soon. Tuesday was the day of Grayridge’s most dominantly recognized maxim. It was the day where people ate at home with their families since Grayridge was the hotspot for workaholics.

              We powered through the last few orders from people before beginning to close down around ten. We were having a 10:30 dinner, so Pap and I had to rush, rush, _rush_ to get ready in time. Harley and Hiro helped us get everything scrubbed down and locked everything up. It was truly barely controlled chaos at its finest.

              “I CAN’T BELIEVE WE ACTUALLY MIGHT BE ON TIME!” Papyrus and I jogged through the streets side by side. Harley on my shoulder. Hiro snuggled on his, “I HONESTLY THOUGHT WE’D END UP BEING BEHIND.”

              “We’re not _that_ bad Pap.” I chuckled, “Besides, they probably won’t mind it if we’re a little late.”

              “Nadia might.” Harley lit up another bitty cigarette and hummed some soft tune under his breath, “It’d be kind of embarrassing if Josephine beats us there.”

              “oooh!” Hiro’s eyes sparkled, “will we get to see grey?”

              “More than likely.” _Unless Sans stays back tonight. Then she might have left Greyson with him at home……_ The chances of Sissy not bringing Greyson were low though. If anything, she’d probably have left the bitties at home instead, “We’ll see though.”

              The restaurant- which had even fewer customers than Pap and I had had- was a small, simple place on the very edge of main street. It didn’t stand out in a good or bad way, and the place had gotten some good reviews and some meh reviews. Over all, it was the cheap place people went to eat in large groups when everyone was low on cash.

              “Olivia!” Granny waved Papyrus and I over, “and Papyrus! Hello my dears!”

              Granny sat at a table with Nadia, Sissy, Sans, and Greyson. Sans was currently holding Greyson close while the baby fed from a bottle. Waltzer sat on his head, watching Greyson very closely. Cesar- Nadia’s boss- sulked beside her while purposely avoiding Idjit- Sissy’s cherry. December- an adorable buttonberry- clung close to Idjit, and I was happy to see that Sissy’s curly and ray- Cyan and Sunshine- were happily chatting together with Blake popping in and out of their conversation. The most interesting part of the table definitely had to be the two hybrid off spring bitties tugging some bread into smaller pieces to eat. Tinsel- a little skeleton of yellow flames- grinned when Atlantic- a skeleton made of up blue water- lightly tossed a piece of bread into his mouth. The two both had damaged eyes. Tinsel’s left eye never formed correctly, leaving a small, eternal red flame bursting out and back from his eye socket, and Atlantic’s eyes never formed properly at all- the small bubbles bulged out of his head and swirled with pale blues.

              “Hey guys!” I sat down beside Nadia. Papyrus sat between Sans and I, “How’s little Grey doing?”

              “He’s hungry.” Sissy yawned, “Jeez.”

              “Did he have you up all night again?” Granny frowned.

              “no.” Sans’s eyes gave Sissy a slightly annoyed look, “she stayed up really late to meet a ridiculous deadline her client dropped on her out of the blue.”

              “I couldn’t just leave him hanging.” Sissy protested.

              “Was the date in the contract?” Nadia’s gaze never cross Greyson’s small frame.

              “No.”

              “Then you didn’t have it for a deadline. You legally could’ve.”

              “But what about morally?” Sissy rolled her shoulders, “He needed it done by seven in the morning today, and he’s always been a good client. This is the first time he’s ever dropped something like this on me.”

              “it isn’t.” Waltzer lazily kicked his feet back and forth, “he’s done this twice before. you need to quit letting him get away with it.”

              Sissy scowled up at the sansy. She looked ready to argue when Atlantic quietly waved to get her attention.

              “Yes?” Sissy’s smile was so natural now, so easy. Atlantic hovered a piece of bread in the air. Tinsel, who had moved to the opposite side of the table, opened his mouth. Atlantic made the shot. He didn’t miss, “Good job guys.”

              Atlantic smiled softly at Sissy.

              “Hey kids.” Harley waved at the two after teleporting off of my shoulder.

              “Hi Harley!” Tinsel beamed. Atlantic curled in on himself. He just frowned, “Atty!” With a petulant look on his face, Atlantic offered up a weak wave.

              “Sorry Harley.” Cyan rubbed the side of his face, “Atlantic still isn’t too keen on outside bitties.”

              “It’s fine.” Harley tucked his hands into his pockets.

              “iiiddjjjiittt!” Hiro hurried over and pulled the cherry into a tight hug. December flinched back, but he also looked torn between waiting and just grabbing Idjit away from Hiro. In the end, Hiro finally released the winded cherry, “i’m so glad to see you!”

              “BROTHER?” Papyrus leaned closer to looked at Greyson, “HE HAS MILK LEAKING OUT OF HIS MOUTH.”

              “hmm?” Sans angled his head to look at Greyson better. Sissy quickly cleaned the leakage, “jeez little guy. you’re just scarfing this down huh?”

              “he acts like we don’t feed him.” Blake snorted. A fond look covered his face though.

              “WHERE’S FLOWEY AND SNUGGLE?” Papyrus looked around for the other two bitties.

              “Sick apparently.” Nadia answered for Sissy, “Well, Flowey is. Snuggle stayed back to nurse him to health.”

              “that was very kind of him!” Hiro grinned, “i hope that flowey feels better soon!’

              “hmph.” Sans made a disgusted face at the idea. Sissy looked ready to elbow him.

              From there, the waiter came and took our order with a pale face. Feeding four humans, two monsters, and twelve bitties was quite the task after all. Still, they should be happy for this kind of business on Tuesday.

              Conversing with my family over dinner was a rare treat, so I made sure to enjoy it. It took Granny and me a little while to get Nadia to open up about her work. She’d been doing well in Greenridge. The hours were terrible though. Cesar often had to bring her coffee to keep her awake during some of the more grueling weeks.

              “Do you mind if I take a picture Sans?” I asked quietly, reaching for my phone. Josephine, Papyrus, Granny, and Nadia were locked into a conversation about noodles for some reason, and I really wanted to get another picture of Greyson.

              “of course not.” Sans chuckled.

              I couldn’t find my phone.

              “Drat!” I muttered.

              “mama?”

              “Mom?”

              Immediately, my bitties were eyeing me. All attention turned to me. My cheeks flared bright red.

              “I left my phone at the restaurant.” I explained, rubbing the back of my neck, “I wanted to get a picture of Greyson.”

              “I can snap one.” Granny offered.

              “WE’LL STOP BACK BY THE RESTURANT AND PICK IT UP.” Papyrus patted my shoulder, “WE NEED THAT TO MAKE SURE THAT EVERYONE CAN COME IN TOMORROW.”

              “Mmmhmmm.” I nodded.

              “speaking of pictures…” Sans shifted a bit awkwardly in his seat, “mettaton has a new body. alph finished it last week. i hear he’s moving to oliverdale to go some acting school.”

              “I SEE.” Papyrus’s smile seemed a little forced.

              “Mettaton?” I questioned.

              “….” Sans seemed to be debating how much he could say.

              “MY EX.” Papyrus explained, blushing just a little bit, “WE WERE TOGETHER BRIEFLY WHEN SANS WORKED WITH ALPHYS IN THE LAB, BUT THINGS ENDED AFTER SANS AND I MOVED TO SNOWDIN.”

              “Oooh…” I tapped my finger, “Wait, was he that light pink ghost?”

              “Yup.” Sissy answered.

              “He has a body?” I frowned.

              “You haven’t seen him in some of the indie short films that have come out recently?” Nadia cocked her head, “He’s very popular in Blackridge already.”

              “No.” I crossed my arms.

              “I have.” Harley raised his hand.

              “You have?” _How_?

              “One of the local stations played one a couple of days ago. Hiro and I watched- well _I_ watched it. Hiro fell asleep- it while you and Pap were tweaking the menu.”

              “Huh…”

              My apartment-mate had an ex I didn’t know about. I shot Papyrus a slightly hurt look. His return look was apologetic. _I can’t blame him for not telling me I guess. No one really wants to talk about their exes._

              “Speaking of Oliverdale.” Sissy snapped her fingers, “Leo’s cousin heard that a food critic would be stopping by your restaurant sometime within the next few months.”

              “What!?” My hands flew to my face in alarm, “We’ve only been open for a few months!”

              “That is true.” Nadia nodded, taking a sip of wine before patting Cesar’s head, “Make sure to not ruin his or her evening, or the business could completely fail.”

              “Nadia.” Granny and Sissy groaned.

              “What?” She asked innocently.

              Papyrus and I shared a worried look. We would have to be _perfect_ the next few months. The two of us took a deep breath together and fist bumped.

              The rest of the dinner wasn’t that exciting. Greyson actually babbled back to Papyrus and I when we finally got the right to hold him. He still felt really small and fragile in my arms. Nadia didn’t hold him at all. We all decided to skip desert because most of us were tired.

              “Be careful.” Nadia fixed some of my hair lovingly, “The streets are still a bit rough.”

              “We will be.” I promised.

              “text me when you guys get home.” Sans ordered.

              “YES BROTHER.” Papyrus agreed.

              After giving Sissy and Granny quick hugs, Papyrus and I hurried back to the restaurant.

              “I can’t believe I forgot my phone.” I chuckled.

              “everyone makes mistakes mama!” Hiro said encouragingly.

              “IT’S NOT LIKE YOU FORGOT TO TURN OF THE STOVES OR SOMETHING.” Papyrus added, “THAT WOULD’VE BEEN DISASTROUS!”

              “And expensive.” Harley yawned.

              “Well, we always need to remember our small blessings huh?” I locked arms with Papyrus, “Though, I do want all of the details about this love affair you _never mentioned_. I thought you said the last person you dated was a nice girl in Snowdin, and you decided you were better off as friends!”

              “SHE WAS THE LAST!” Papyrus protested playfully, “METTATON AND I ENDED OUR RELATIONSHIP A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO.”

              “You still didn’t tell me.” I pouted playfully.

              _How disappointing is it that even **Papyrus** has a more interesting love life than I do? _I shook my head a little bit. _It’s not disappoint at all! Pap is such a nice guy! It’s no wonder he has a few exes. It just so happens that they all seem to be a little bit famous._

              “What’s that?” Harley tensed. The sound of police sirens caught my attention. Papyrus and I shared a look before running the last few blocks to our restaurant.

              The police were examining where a window had been broken with a brick. A box was also tossed inside along with the brick.

              “Oh my goodness!” My hand flew up to cover my mouth.

              “Excuse me ma’am.” The police officer held his hands up as Papyrus and I approached, “We’re waiting for the owner to answer her phone.”

              “I’m the owner.” I said quickly, “I left my phone in the restaurant.”

              “Ah.”

              Someone had witness a dark red car whizz through the mostly empty streets. It stopped to hurl a brick through the window, and a figure got out to toss the box inside. No one was certain was inside the box, so the bomb squad had been called.

              “Do you know why someone would do this?” The officer asked.

              “I fired an employee today.” I growled at the thought of that bitch doing this to my restaurant.

              “Could you give us her contact information?”

              “Of course.”

              “We’ve got a bitty!” Someone from inside the building called.

              _A bitty?_

              A small, sickly bitty was in a nest of dirty rags and old clothing. He was tiny and had curled in on himself protectively. A small set of glowing green eyes opened to look up at all of us. Fear made him try to bury deeper into the rags.

              “Is he yours?” The police officer asked, noting the two bitties Papyrus and I had.

              “NO.” Papyrus answered.

              “He will be now.” I gritted my teeth, “We need to get him the CC. He’s malnourished, and I think he has a few cracks in his neck.”

              _What kind of sick bastard does this to a defenseless bitty!?_

 _Grrr…Just you wait until my sister hears about this you bitch. You better_ hope _the cops find you first._


	3. Snooze

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I own nothing. Full disclaimer/links can be found in Ch1
> 
> Annnddd Snooze (created by @undertaleaufactory) is here! For anyone looking for a link directly to him here: http://undertaleaufactory.tumblr.com/post/148619045796/sleepy-sans-dunno-wonder-what-would-happen-in-a

              “Miss Newmore!” Karli was waiting for us the instant Papyrus and I stepped through the door, “The nighttime emergency staff was informed you would be coming in with an injured bitty, so they called me. Do you have the bitty?”

              “Yeah.” My breath came in short pants as I slowly took the small bitty from where I had been cradling him against my chest, “He’s got cracks down his spine.”

              “Oh stars.” Karli cursed. Gently, she took him from me. She quickly examined the back of his neck and sighed in relief, “Thank goodness. They’re small enough to recover from without serious injury.”

              “THAT’S WONDERFUL.” Papyrus brightened for the first time since we found the restaurant in the state it was in.

              “We’ll begin treatment immediately.” Karli looked over to the empty chairs in the lobby, “Please, take a seat.”

              Papyrus and I sank down into the lobby chairs after Karli hurried the little guy into the back.

              “that’s so mean.” Hiro was rubbing light blue tears away from his face, “what kind of person could do such a thing? surely such evil only exists in fiction?”

              “Sorry bro.” Harley teleported to where Hiro was sitting on Papyrus’s lap, “It doesn’t. I really wish it did though.”

              “I THOUGHT THAT THE NEW LAWS AROUND BITTIES WOULD BE ENOUGH TO DISCOURAGE SUCH ACTIONS.” Papyrus sighed. He took off his gloves and rubbed his face with his hands. When I first saw the holes in his hands, I thought he had been injured. The openings were apparently a genetic defect that ran on his father’s side of the family, “I AM SAD TO SEE THAT THEY WEREN’T.”

              “Me too.” I pulled my hair back into a low ponytail. My mascara had run because of the few tears that had escaped my control. Sniffling like I was a child again, I pulled my phone- which I had Harley grab while Papyrus and I got the new bitty prepped for travel- out to call my Sissy.

              Like always, I couldn’t stand on my own two feet. I needed her.

              Leaning against Papyrus, I dialed her number out of pure muscle memory. The sound of the phone ringing was enough to make me start crying. Papyrus wrapped his arms around me and pulled me into a hug. Hiro had begun to cry in full force as well, so Harley alternated between comforting him and patting my hand gently.

              “Hello?” Sissy’s voice was hoarse from being woken up, “Livvy? Is something wrong baby boo?”

              “Sissy.” I rubbed at my face.

              “What’s wrong?” I didn’t have to see her to know that she had sat straight up, “Where are you?”

              “P-Papyrus and I went back to Chez Newmore to get my phone, but…” I bit back a sob, “Someone had thrown a brick threw the window. They then tossed a box with a living bitty into the restaurant. We’re at the Bitty CC right now while the bitty is being treated for his injuries.”

              “I’ll be there in five.”

              Sissy hung up the phone. I placed my hand in my lap and finally wrapped an arm around Papyrus. Warm droplets fell into my hair, but I didn’t raise any fuss about it.

              To say that such an act was a shock would be like saying that the sky was blue. In the months that followed the monsters getting their rights, violent acts had dwindled down to nonexistence. _What could’ve possibly agitated them? Did that bitch really have that much influence in one of those groups?_ I kept wondering what I could’ve done differently to prevent this from happening. Logically, I recognized that I couldn’t control the actions of extremists even if I wanted to. Emotionally, I felt like it was all my fault.

              “Livvy? Pap?”

              It never ceased to surprise me how quickly Sissy could fall asleep. She and Sans had probably only teleported back to their condo about 45 minutes ago, but Sissy looked like she had been woken up from a long sleep. The familiar sight of her strong, scarred arms- bared by her tank top- made me rush up to her and crush her into a hug. Her wild mop of dirty blonde curls had tangled during her sprint to get to the Bitty CC, and she was completely barefoot. Those minor details didn’t matter.

              _An annoyed 16 year old Josephine Newmore stood with her arms cross defiantly as a tall man got up in her face. Unfazed by the blatant aggression, she returned each scream with a sharp criticism of her own._

_“My daughter hasn’t been bullying anyone!”_

_“Then explain the bruises on my sister’s knees asshole!” Josephine leaned in close, “Because she isn’t the clumsy type, and **guess what**? I have witnesses who will say that your **brat** is the one that shoved my little sister down!”_

_“Bullshit!” The man spat, “You rich little whores just love to cause trouble for all of us without enough money to shut you up huh?”_

_“What the hell does my parents’ money have to do with any of this!?” Josephine was close enough to kiss him at this point, “My little sister- one of the **nicest** children in this damn school- is being harassed by your daughter, and I have the feeling that you let her use the logic you just used to justify her actions!”_

_In the end, a couple of teachers had to separate the two out of concern for the man’s safety. Josephine had put more than one disgruntled father in the ER after he took a swing at her. Josephine backed down when instructed to, but she didn’t let him get any form of victory._

_“I’ll be taking this to the principal. Let’s see how your daughter enjoys being one of the problem students jackass!” My sister’s strong arm wrapped around my tiny shoulders. Her voice dropped to a softer volume and became very gentle, “Come on baby boo. Fuck these asshats. I know you aren’t lying to me.”_

“Olivia!?” Nadia hurried in. _When did someone call her?_ I wasn’t unhappy to see my other sister, but I struggled to figure out how she could’ve gotten here, “Are you alright? I saw the restaurant, and the police told me about what happened.”

              Immediately, Nadia walked over and put a hand on my shoulder. She wasn’t as tolerant of physical contact as Sissy, who was silently allowing me to smother her in my tight embrace, but she had had her periods of sisterly concern when we were younger. Those periods had stopped as we grew older and more distant, but the gentle touch brought me back to simpler times.

              _“Olivia.” Nadia brushed my hair back with a mouthful of bobby pins, “Stay still or you’ll ruin all of my work.”_

_“Sorry. It itches.” I crinkled my nose. Fear of being called ugly at my Junior prom led me to ask, “Did you really mean it when you said that those girls who called me ugly were just jealous?”_

_“Olivia, you’ve been scouted by three modeling agencies since you were nine.” Nadia continued to work on pulling my glossy hair into a classy looking up-do, “You aren’t ugly. Trust me. Besides, Josephine is the one who inherited all of the gremlin genes. She didn’t leave any for you.”_

_“Nadi!” I whined, pouting up at her, “You promised to try to be nice.”_

_“I said I’d **try**. I never said I’d succeed at it.” Nadia grumbled, “Now, we’re going to show those worthless harlots what true beauty is, and it most certainly isn’t little black dresses and bright ass red stilettos. No…we’ll show them what classic beauty is all about. Yes we will.”_

_Of the twins, Nadia had always been the most understanding when it came to body image issues. Even in my teenage years, I had lost count of how many times I had found Nadia staring at her naked image in a mirror and frowning in disgust. Josephine- who always worried in silence- was so out of touch with the idea of impression others that she couldn’t even begin to understand. I wanted to be pretty not rebellious._

_Nadia got that._

              “OLIVIA’S SISTERS.” Papyrus rubbed at his face, discreetly sliding the gloves back on. Gathering the two bitties in his hand, he stood up to join us, “I WOULD SAY GOOD EVENING, BUT…”

              “That’s understandable Pap.” Sissy wheezed from where I continued to squeeze her to death. One of her hands reached out and patted him on the forearm, “I’d say this was a rough experience for both of you.”

              “How is the bitty doing?” Nadia carefully pried me off of Sissy. Josephine took a handful of deep gasping breaths before taking her tank top off for me to use as a rag to clean my face some. _Thank goodness she’s wearing a sports bra._

              “We don’t know.” Harley responded.

              “WE HEARD THAT IT HAD RECEIVED SOME INJURIES.” Cesar sat on Nadia’s shoulder with his legs crossed, “….HUMAN INFLICTED ONES NO DOUBT.”

              “It could’ve been humans, or they could’ve come from him being tossed around.” Harley rubbed small circles into Hiro’s skull, “There were some small cracks down his spine that were alarming. Karli said that they should be treatable though.”

              “That’s a relief.” Josephine continued to rub my back comfortingly.

              “What are you planning to do?” Nadia- ever practical- questioned, “Will you be adopting him?”

              “Mhm.” I nodded my head. _Oh…Sissy’s white tank top is thoroughly ruined now…_ I handed it back to her sheepishly. Josephine just tossed it over one shoulder, “I can’t just leave him here after this.”

              “I’d offer to take him in but…” Josephine sighed, “Things are already tight between me, Comic, Flowey, and the ten bitties I already have.”

              “I know.” I fixed my hair some. The familiar motions helped ground me some, “Papyrus and I won’t go broke with just one more bitty in our midst.”

              “IT WON’T BE AN ISSUE AT ALL.” Papyrus agreed, “HE MOST CERTAINLY DESERVES A HOME AFTER THIS.”

              “yeah!” Hiro tried his best to sound positive, but his sadness made his voice crack a little bit.

              “Do you want us to wait here with you?” Nadia asked. Cesar frowned at her, but she just quieted any protest with a simple ‘please’ look.

              “If you can?”

              _Jeez. How pathetic can I get?_

              This was where the question that haunted my stray thoughts and dreams came up once more. How much leaning counted as too much? Was it wrong of me to crave my sisters’ support right now? Should I have dealt with this problem on my own with just Papyrus, Harley, and Hiro? Does my desire somehow indicate that I was still the same petulant child that threw tantrums and hissy fits as a teenager? _At least some imitations had enough decency to be fiercely independent._

              Nadia and Sissy sat with Papyrus and I as we waited. Greyson had apparently fallen asleep on the way home, so Sans and the bitties opted to stay back to look after him. Given my Sissy’s penchant for justice driven violence, I was a bit shocked they allowed her to wander the dark, nighttime streets on her own. The kind act filled me with gratitude however.

              “Papyrus?” Another worried voice cut through the quiet conversation that we had been having. King Asgore had entered the BCC dressed in light casual attire with Undyne on his heels. _I guess Sans must’ve called them._

              “Pap!” Undyne zeroed in on us immediately, “Sans told us something bad happened to a bitty! Are Harley and Hiro okay?”

              “We’re fine.” Harley waved at the two monsters who hurried over to our small group. Undyne and King Asgore visibly relaxed upon seeing that both of them were okay.

              “YOUR MAJESTY!” Papyrus seemed rather shocked, “AND UNDYNE? YOU TRULY CAME TO CHECK ON US?”

              “I came to check on you bonehead.” Undyne punched him in the shoulder. She quickly looked at my sisters and I, “Alright, I was a little bit worried about the humans too, but these girls got grit. You’re…well…you.”

              “I spoke with the police on the way here.” King Asgore sat down beside Sissy, “They apprehended the suspects. Apparently it was your previous employee that did this.”

              _Ugh._

              My stomach curled with revulsion.

              “I hope she burns in hell.” I muttered. King Asgore and Undyne seemed shocked by brief lapse in my usually positive character. My sisters- who were used to my temper when I was upset- just patted me on the back comfortingly, “Seriously. I should’ve decker her.”

              “Josephine…” Nadia glared at Sissy.

              “It’s better that she knows how to throw a punch when she’s angry then not be able to throw one at all.” Sissy snapped back, “But yes darling. You should’ve knocked out her goddamn teeth.”

              “Nnnnnoooo…” Nadia groaned, “PHINE!”

              “Dia!” Sissy stuck her tongue out.

              The brief exchange made Papyrus chuckle for the first time in the past hour and half.

              “Will you be adopting the bitty?” King Asgore questioned. I nodded. He smiled, “I suppose the Newmores must all possess a self-sacrificing gene.”

              “Most of us.” Sissy threw Nadia smug look, “It skipped a few people.” Nadia gritted her teeth.

              “At least the little guy will have a good home.” Undyne punched my shoulder affectionately. I bit back a wince to avoid hurting her feelings, “The jerks who did this will pay for it at least!”

              “I’ll be calling Ty.” Sissy seemed to be formulating a plan already, “He’ll leave them fucked for the rest of their lives….”

              _Normally I’d say that was wrong, but… **a worthless piece of garbage** who abuses a bitty doesn’t deserve any sympathy. _

              “Miss N-“ Karli came out of the back cradling a more than likely somewhat drugged bitty in her hands. She blinked upon seeing how our little group had grown, “Miss Newmore, Miss Newmore, Miss Newmore, Mister Papyrus, Miss Undyne, and King Dreemurr…..hello.”

              “Greetings.” King Asgore stood and bowed ever so slightly. Karli blushed deep red, “Sorry for the shock. Undyne and I came to check on Papyrus and the situation.”

              “How’s the bitty?” I asked, standing up beside King Asgore. As always, he cut an imposing figure. I found it hard to find a man who loved tending to flowers and eating pie that intimidating however.

              “Tired.” Karli smiled down at the small bitty, “He’s a sleepy, so it’s understandable. The whole situation shook him up though- obviously.”

              “HAS HE MENTIONED ANY OWN PREVIOUS TO BEING THROWN INTO THE BOX?” Cesar inquired while Nadia stood up.

              “No.” Karli shook his head, “He’s spoken only a little, but from what we’ve gathered….well….his previous owner gave him over to the extremists a couple of hours ago in exchange for some cash.”

              _VILE._

              “Hello sweetheart.” I leaned over the sleepy bitty. His soft green eyes opened up and widened upon seeing me. He curled in on himself timidly, “It’s alright little guy. I won’t hurt you. I’m sorry that this happened to you.”

              The soft words seemed to soothe him some. He got up on to his hands and knees before sitting down in a hurry once he was hit with a dizzy spell.

              “mimi?” His small hands rubbed at his eyes. The small cracks that had plagued his spine seemed to have been healed, “new mimi?”

              “Sure sweetie.” I felt a fresh set of tears well up. I rubbed at my face until Sissy handed me her tank top again, “Whatever you want to call me.”

              “LITTLE ONE!” Papyrus said excitedly, “ARE YOU FEELING ALRIGHT? IS THERE ANYTHING THE GREAT PAPYRUS COULD DO TO HELP YOU?”

              The sleepy turned his head to look at Papyrus.

              “dede?” He cocked his head. Papyrus seemed smitten.

              “Well…at least this transition seems to be happening smoothly.” Nadia sighed in relief.

              “Mimi and Dede.” King Asgore chuckled, “I think the little one believes the two of you to be in a specific kind of relationship.”

              Papyrus and I both blushed.

              “I ASSURE YOU WE ARE NOT!/No! Papyrus is like my brother!”

              All of the vibrating tension that had been suffocating everyone earlier seemed to dissipate slightly. It almost completely evaporated once Hiro tugged the still disoriented sleepy into a tight hug. He spoke too quickly for anyone to understand, but Harley just waved away our concerns. The sleepy seemed to be equally shocked and annoyed by the extreme cuddles he had to endure. He tolerated it however.

              King Asgore, Undyne, Nadia, and Sissy left after assuring that the bitty would be okay. Papyrus and I were tending to the paperwork and the payment for the visit.

              “DO YOU HAVE A NAME LITTLE ONE?” Papyrus asked, patting the sleepy on the head. Hiro clung to the new bitty’s arm out of relief, and Harley hovered protectively around the two shorter bitties.

              The new bitty thought about it for a while and shook his head.

              “Well…” I pouted, “That won’t do. You need a name buddy.”

              “Hmmm…” Harley observed as the sleepy grew a little bit disinterested in the whole conversation. He began to doze off while standing up, “Snooze.”

              “Snooze?” I raised a brow, “You didn’t go buy more weed from that dealer did you? It’s still illegal in this state.”

              “No.” Harley looked genuinely offended, “Just look at the little tyke. He’s going to fall asleep standing up at this rate.”

              “SNOOZE IS A CUTE NAME.” Papyrus grinned happily, “IT HAS THE APPROVAL OF THE GREAT PAPYRUS!”

              _Oh this poor little guy._

              “Well?” I rubbed my thumb over the top of his skull, “How do you like it little guy? Does Snooze seem like a good name to you?”

              He thought about it for a little bit.

              Then the biggest smile I’d ever seen crossed his face.

              _Awwwwwwwwww._

              I tugged him close and kissed the top of his head. He blushed a vibrant neon green color.

              _He's precious....There's no way in hell I'm **ever** letting him end up hurt like this again._


	4. A King in the Grocery Store

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I own nothing. Full disclaimer/ links can be found in Ch1
> 
> Sooo....I'm having back and chest pains right now. I actually swung by the hospital to get some x-rays done. Thankfully it's nothing heart related or bone, but sadly, it's nothing that can be fixed quickly. Advil will be my best friend in the coming days. (Please point out any glaring errors. My back is really starting to fucking ache like a bitch...uggggghhhh...I hate not being able to do shit...now that I think about it....I think I still have an hour before I can take more medicine. UGH)Thus, I might be updating a little bit slower than usual. I also have a couple of quizzes and tests before my semester wraps up...so...bleh...*frowns* Sorry

              “Snooze…” I gently prodded the tired bitty with my finger. He didn’t budge from where he had cuddled up next to me. He tended to alternate between sleeping with me and sleeping with Papyrus, but Pap had gone over to visit Sans the night before. Thus, his only option had been to snuggle down with Hiro, Harley, and I, “It’s time to get up baby.”

              He whined softly in the back of his throat.

              Snooze had adjusted well to his new life in our apartment. He seemed to favor Harley’s more relaxed nature, but he would tolerate some of Hiro’s more upbeat days. The little guy fully recovered during the two weeks he’d been living with us- thank goodness. Snooze also didn’t seem to mind the tight living space either. It was difficult to find an apartment close to main street- where I opened Chez Newmore after almost killing some people to get the building- because everyone wanted to be on or near main street. Thus, Papyrus and I took the first opening we could find and rejoiced at the victory. The apartment might’ve been smaller than my previous one, but I didn’t regret the move one bit. My favorite perk was being able to live with Papyrus despite the obvious bonus of being a short distance away from the restaurant.

              “Come on little guy.” Harley rubbed his back comfortingly. Hiro had already hurried off to get my bath started, “We need to get a bath.”

              The idea of a nice, warm bath seemed to be enough to entice him out of his spot under my armpit. He almost reminded me of a soft bones, but he was a bit more active than they were. Snooze just didn’t enjoy the early hours that came with opening a business. He did enjoy the soft little bed he’d crafted in one of the back offices though.

              “mama!” Hiro peered in through the door, “the bath is almost ready.”

              “We’re getting up.” I stretched my arms out to try and loosen them up before scooping Harley and Snooze up, “Bath time.”

              “Do you think today will be the day?” Harley questioned as we walked to the bathroom.

              “It might be.” I shrugged. Some part of me really wished that Leo’s cousin had given us a more specific time, but I was grateful for early warning. I wasn’t unused to dealing with critics. Way back when I first opened Chez Newmore, a couple dozen bloggers swung by to rate our service. Most of them were positive, but there were a couple who intentionally left bad reviews to try and get under my skin, “We’ll just have to wait and see.”

              “groceries.” Snooze yawned.

              _Oh right!_

              The chaos surrounding Snooze had been followed by one of our ovens dying, so grocery shopping had fallen to the bottom of the priority list. We didn’t worry over it too much since we mostly ate at work to begin with. Still, we needed some nonedible items like toilet paper, soap, etc. as well as food.

              “I’ll be heading out early.” I told my bitties while I stripped down, “Do you guys want to come with me or stay with Papyrus? Either will work.”

              “I’ll stay behind to help out Pap.” Harley scratched a rib.

              “i will too! clean-up can take forever.” Hiro practically bounced with his enthusiasm, “snoozey? what about you?”

              “mimi.” Snooze took off his long-sleeved t-shirt.

              “Alright.” I shrugged. It wasn’t like Snooze could cause me any trouble after all. He’d probably just quietly watch me shop and doze on my shoulder a little bit, “Now, time for a nice bath before we’re in a bad place for the next few hours.”

              Don’t get me wrong. I loved my work with a burning passion. I might not have been the next Gordon Ramsey, but I was proud of what I was accomplishing. Running your own business took a lot out of a person though. Thankfully, I had Papyrus to help me keep positive. Staying negative around him was almost impossible.

              Work went smoothly. A few hiccups popped up during the lunch service, but we managed to iron out the kinks before dinner began. A couple of my workers seemed to have been chewing on a disagreement though. Nothing managed to completely blindside me at least. The first few weeks Chez Newmore had been open had almost broken me with all of the back stabbing going on, rules and regulations being update, and my family drama adding up to create a lot of stress. Hiro and Harley had soothed most of my troubles though.

              “Mom.” Harley called to me from where he was scrubbing a couple of plates, “If you want to make good time, you might want to head out now.”

              I checked the clock and found Harley’s observation to be correct.

              “Pap!” I handed over my duties to Ilia, “I’ll be going now! Where’s Snooze?”

              “OFFICE LIVI!” Papyrus called back, “STAY SAFE. I’LL SEE YOU AT HOME IN ABOUT AN HOUR AND HALF.”

              “See you then!”

              Snooze must’ve heard me asking about him because he’d wandered out of the office to greet me. He quickly grabbed onto my thumb the instant I reached down to pick him up. The little guy still remained too small for my tastes. Velour insisted that he’d be alright, but I really wanted him to gain some more weight.

              “You ready to go grocery shopping?” I kissed the top of his head. He hummed back sweetly, “I’ll try to hit the quieter stores okay? That way you can doze in peace.”

              Hiro all but demanded a quick kiss before I left to go shopping. Harley made sure I had my phone and still seemed tense about what happened two weeks prior. Papyrus was too focused to really pay me much attention beyond waving at me energetically as I left.

              _I have a home.  I have friends. I have family. I have job I love._

_**But what’s missing?**_

_I’m succeeding right? I’m accomplishing things and taking my life into my own hands…. Why do I still feel like my parents would still just ignore me if they came back tomorrow?_

              The child in me still mourned the loss of my parents. They weren’t good people, but they weren’t evil either- just misguided and a bit dense. If they had seized the opportunity to learn about what was really important, my family might not have been as fractured as it was. _Is it wrong of me to crave the “normal” family life?_

              Maybe it was. It did sound a bit ungrateful to Sissy who had done her best to take care of me all of those years. She sacrificed a lot for me, and she never really asked for anything in return. In fact, any time I tried to bring up repaying her, she’d just tell me to be a good person and take care of myself. That was enough apparently.

_Is it?_

              _Gaah._

              I tugged on some of my hair sharply.  Snooze looked up at me confused, and I quickly realized that I probably looked a little insane.

              “mimi?”

              “It’s nothing sweetheart.” My laugh sounded forced even to my own ears, “I’m just being a bit silly.” I tapped his nose, “Anyways, since you’re the one here with me, why don’t we buy you a little treat while we’re in the store?”

              “please?” Snooze perked up at the idea.

              “Sure.” I wink at him, “It’ll have to be just between us though. Be thinking about what you might want to snack on.”

              The adorable expression of focused thought that filled his face made me giggle some. Bitties were like pets in the way that just having one can make you feel better. They do silly things that make you laugh, and they always seem to be able to tell when you’re not feeling alright. I wished that I had gotten my bitties sooner in all honesty. If I had a time travelling device, I’d go back to when monsters and bitties first emerged from Mt. Ebbot to tell my younger self to go out and get one. Of course, there would be no telling how things would’ve been different if I had adopted one earlier.

              _I wonder if Sissy would’ve ever encountered Idjit…_

              That was a truly terrifying thought. Really, the large changes that happened in our lives occurred after Sissy finally began to show signs of recovery. She did get into more trouble with not-so-nice people, but the happy grin on her face whenever she managed to defend the bitties or some monsters made the moments of fear worth it in the end…..Actually….Nadia might’ve never adopted Cesar either. Would she have stayed with Edgar- ugh- and aborted Greyson? A shudder crawled down my spine.

              _I’m definitely glad that the bitties came into our lives._

“mimi?” Snooze tugged on my thumb, “store.”

              “Huh?”

              I was about to walk right by the grocery store like an idiot.

              “Thank you sweetie.” I nuzzled him close, “I was about to just strut on by. Would you mind riding on my shoulder darling?”

              Snooze shook his head and climbed onto my shoulder.

              _Let’s see….I can’t do much since I don’t have Papyrus to help me carry things…hmmmmm…._

              Prioritizing the list of items I knew the apartment needed took more thought than I expected. After mentally noting that we needed to prevent this from happening in the future, I began to hunt down the top few things I knew we would need in the next few weeks.

              Nobody really paid me much mind as I shopped. Unlike Sissy, who had had her face plastered across local TV screens a couple of months back, I didn’t have a ton of drama going on in my life for people to dig into.

              “mimi?” Snooze shifted into a more comfortable position on my shoulder after I grabbed a bottle of hand soap and put it in the shopping basket I was carrying.

              “Yes?”

              “king.”

              _King? What king?_

              I turned my head in the direction Snooze was pointing. Surprisingly, King Asgore stood at the end of aisle looking torn between two brands of tissues.

              “Your majesty.” I called out politely. His head rose slightly as he looked around. He spotted me quickly and offered me a kind smile.

              “Miss Olivia.” He offered a handshake in greeting, “It’s nice to see you.”

              “It’s good to see you too your majesty.” His hand practically dwarfed mine. I never ceased at being amazed at all of the contradictions one could find in the king. His size alone made him seem intimidating and vicious, but his soft smile and sad eyes spoke a much more somber reality, “I’ll be honest. I didn’t expect to ever run into you grocery shopping.”

              “I do have to do my own shopping.” King Asgore laughed, “This store isn’t my favorite to go to however.” King Asgore blushed at the blunt comment, looking around to make sure no employees had overheard him, “They don’t have the brands I like, but my favorite one is being renovated right now. This store has managed to meet my basic needs at least. Work has left me rather busy lately. I can never seem to find the time to maintain the house before it looks closer to a pig sty than a home.”

              “I know the feeling somewhat. Papyrus is a bit of a clean freak.” I giggled upon remembering the fit he had thrown when we first moved in together. My more messy tendencies drove him a bit wild, “We’re running low on some things for the apartment.” I sighed, “We’ve just been slammed with reservations this week, so tonight, Papyrus and I decided one of us would go shopping while the other dealt with the last bit of dinner service and locking up.”

              “I’m glad to hear that Papyrus has found a friend he can rely upon.” King Asgore did seem genuinely relieved, “He’s always been a slight source of concern for Undyne and I. He’s not…well…he’s himself, and while that isn’t a bad thig, it made his life in the Underground a little bit harder.”

              “underground.” Snooze murmured, “pretty rocks.”

              King Asgore and I both exchanged a confused, interested look.

              “Pretty rocks?” I questioned.

              “not stars.” Snooze pointed to the ceiling, “pretty rocks though….glittering all of the time.”

              “Hmmm….he could’ve formed back in the very beginning when bitties weren’t incubated properly…” King Asgore hummed in thought, “Interesting.”

              “Pretty rocks?” I asked the king.

              “He’s referring to the magically infused stones that line the ceiling of the underground.” He explained, “They were our own little stars.”

              “I see.” _How old is this little guy exactly?_

              “good father showed me things.” Snooze added, “then...he got sick. mean coats took me from him and put me in a pen…then first mimi got me.” He frowned, “she let the scarred men take me.”

              _As precious as you are Snooze, I can’t understand a damn thing you’re saying._

              “Curious.” King Asgore crossed his arms, “Ah well, I suppose that is a line thought meant for another day. We both have errands to tend to. Do you need any help Miss Olivia?”

              “I couldn’t impose…”

              “It wouldn’t be a problem. Your sister helped monster kind greatly after all. It’s but a small token of my appreciation for your family’s kindness.” King Asgore shook his head, “Besides, I don’t have many things to collect myself.”

              _Am I seriously going to ask a king to help me carry my groceries?_

              “Fine, but….I won’t let you do it for free.” My mind raced to think of a way to thank him, “I could bring a pie to your workplace!”

              “That seems like a great deal of trouble for you.” King Asgore frowned.

              “You’re helping me despite all of the trouble it’ll cause you.” I stood up on my tip-toes and just barely tapped his nose like I would’ve done to Sissy or Papyrus, “So we’ll be even! What kind of pie would you like? I can make just about any kind. I also created a couple of recipes unique to Chez Newmore if you’d like to try one of them.”

              “You are most certainly stubborn Miss Olivia.” King Asgore’s following sigh seemed almost fond. I had the feeling that I probably reminded him of Undyne or Papyrus.

              “Please, no more ‘Miss’. Just call me Olivia…or Liv…or Livvy. Any of those will work.” I smiled at him, “There’s no need for you to be so formal with me!”

              “Alright.” King Asgore leaned in close, “But only if you agree to quit calling me ‘your majesty’ and ‘King Asgore’. I already get called that enough at work.”

              “But-“ _I can’t just call a **KING** by his first name! that has to be breaking some kind of law…_

              “Please?”

              “asgo.” Snooze clapped his hands happily.

              “Asgo..Pffft…” I snickered, “Asgore darling. It’s Asgore.”

              “It is.” Asgore nodded, “But Asgo isn’t a terrible way to shorten it.”

              Once people began to recognize King As… _Asgore_ , we had more than a few people begin to ogle us. I could already predict the headlines that would cover gossip columns the next morning. The opinions of a bunch of herd minded journalists didn’t matter that much to me.

              “I apologize for the fiasco.” Asgore murmured to me when a couple of journalists snapped pictures of us, “I didn’t realize that I would end up making this much of a stir.”

              “You’re a king.” A fond smile tugged at my lips, “A lot of people would kill for that title.”

              “….” Asgore’s face fell into a frown. A sliver of worry made me wonder what I had said wrong, “Being a king is nowhere as fun as some might think it is. Duty and justice are hard things for a person to carry on their shoulders, and a king usually ends up sitting alone.”

              _That’s…sad._

              I nudged Asgore with my shoulder. The motion made Snooze tangle and chocolate covered hand in my hair to keep from falling off of my shoulder. I whispered a soft apology to him before sending a beaming smile Asgore’s way.

              “You’re not alone your-...Asgore…..It’s going to take me a while to get used to that.” I shook my head gently, “Anyways, I just want you to know that if you need someone to talk to you can hit me up any time. Sometimes it’s easier to talk to an almost stranger than to people you know very well.”

              Asgore mulled over the offer some.

              “Thank you.” He nodded at me kingly, “You and your sister really are one of a kind.”

              “Well….she did practically raise me.” I laughed despite the familiar ache that settled in my chest, “It’s no wonder that we have a few similar behaviors. Too bad I couldn’t glean some of her talent over the years.”

              “But you have.” Asgore looked genuinely shocked.

              _Tch._ Irrational anger boiled in my chest. _I’m so **sick** of people constantly grabbing around for things to make me feel better. Why can’t people just admit that I’m not as good as my sisters and let it go? Why do they always have to try and “make me feel better” about all of it._

              “You’re a talented communicator that brings optimism and levity to otherwise dark times.” Asgore elaborated further, “It’s a rare ability. You should be proud of it.”

              ….

              That was a first.

              “Really?” I hated how quiet my voice got. _Jeez…Is it going to start cracking like it did in middle school or something?_

              “Yes.” Asgore repeated firmly.

              “Thank you.” I ignored the light blush dusting my cheeks, “I rarely hear things like that.”

              “special mimi.” Snooze agreed.

              A lighthearted feeling hovered in my chest. For the first time, someone didn’t grasp at straws to try and make me feel better...

              What an amazing, wonderful feeling!

              Haha!

              The rest of the walk home I had a grin that wouldn’t go away.


	5. Small Tokens

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I own nothing. Full disclaimer/links can be found in Ch1
> 
> My mom had a colonoscopy today, and I was her driver. That's why this up so late. Sawwie. I'll be honestly trying to crank these things out over the weekend (So many plot points to get too...another hybrid to draw...I'll get it done)

              “LIVI!” Papyrus wrapped me in a big hug, “YOU’RE UP EARLY FOR A CHANGE!”

              “Hey,” I chuckled, letting him squeeze me close, “I’m finishing up the pie for Asgore right now actually. I want to make sure that it’s as close to perfection as I can possibly get it.”

              “it’ll definitely be perfect my magnificent mother!” Hiro sniffed the pie and almost seemed to drool a bit, “you’re the one who made it after all!”

              “Besides, Chez Newmore’s milk chocolate banana pie always sells out on Friday.” Harley exhaled a puff of bitty cigarette smoke, “He’ll probably love it. All of our customers can’t be wrong.”

              “you bake…” Snooze cocked his head, “…too?”

              “Not as much as I cook.” I laughed after taking a deep breath once Papyrus sat me down on my feet again, “Sissy got me started on healthy foods when I was very young, so I spent most of my time making healthy lunches and dinners instead of fattening foods….I did make our own bread for our sandwiches a couple of times though.”

              “THAT SELLS OUT TOO.” Papyrus chuckled, beaming brightly, “YOU _MUST_ SHOW ME HOW YOU DO IT!”

              “I thought I gave you the recipe?” I pursed my lips in thought.

              “You did.” Harley chuckled while Papyrus blushed bright orange, “He just can’t get it right.”

              “Is it the holes?” My hands went to the openings in his hands, “I know making a magical barrier to prevent food from passing through his tiring….”

              “NO, NO.” Papyrus shook his head, “I JUST CAN NEVER GET THE DOUGH TO RISE! WILL MY SPECTACULAR FRIEND HELP ME?”

              “You know I can never resist a direct plea from the great Papyrus.” I squeezed his cheek bones loving, “Now, we need to get ready. It should be a slow day since it’s Tuesday, but-“

              “always be prepared.” Snooze yawned.

              “Exactly.” I kissed the top of his head, “So let’s get cracking! It’s time to seize the day!”

              In the week and half that followed my trip to the store, my life nose-dived right into hell once or twice. Greyson ended up getting sick, so I spent three days on the edge of my seat waiting for Sissy’s update on him. Then _Granny_ \- a woman who I will swear until the day I die is made of iron- ended up collapsing at a gala in Sweden. Some anti-monster jackasses vandalized Sans’s workplace again, and a couple of the brats almost did the same thing to my restaurant. Thankfully, some of my staff caught them before they could get a drop of paint on our walls. There was also a big outcry over monster children being able to compete in sports with human children because of the magical advantages monster children had over their mundane counterparts, and a group of jackasses was going around robbing monster and pro-monster human families.

              Madness reigned king.

              At first, I didn’t know _why_ everything seemed to be going to shit like this. Things really had quieted down after the Monster Right’s Bill had passed, so I honestly thought that large scale events like this would be over. Then the news was discussing the quiet resistance of schools and businesses that remained hesitant to allow monsters into their buildings and the effects this had on monster poverty. Monsters were stuck in a rock and a hard place with no obvious way out, and some jerks were beginning to prey on them during their weakest hour.

              It made me sick.

              After all of the pieces clicked together for me, I made sure that all of my monster staff were okay at home and were safe. They all were because of how well they were being paid, but I still worried about all of them. The humans and monsters who helped me weren’t just staff. They were like family. I needed to protect them to the best of my meager abilities. I didn’t have Nadia’s business influence or Sissy’s threatening demeanor, but I would find a way to keep the people I cared about safe.

              “Mom?” Harley looked up at me, a concerned look on his face, “You’re um…stirring that soup kind of hard.”

              “Hmm?” I was pulled back to the current chaotic present.

              “Are you alright?”

              Randomly, I found myself marveling at how good-looking Harley was in kitchen worthy attire. The sight alone almost made we want to find him a mate to snuggle up with. Unlike Hiro and Snooze, who just looked plain adorable, Harley actually managed to pull off a sexy sous-chef look.

              “Mooom!” Harley clicked his teeth together and teleported onto the rim of the pot. He took over immediately, “You’re going to burn the bottom of the soup. What’s wrong?”

              “Nothing.” I blushed, “I’m just on cloud nine I guess.” The two of us began to work in tandem to fill the orders coming, “Sorry.”

              “What’s eating you?” Harley’s hand strayed to mine, “You’re usually not like this.”

              “I…” _Can’t tell you the honest truth. Fuck._ Papyrus and I had decided to shield the bitties from the growing animosity to the best of our abilities. Hiro and Snooze would probably start sniffling if they learned about it, and Harley would probably go off of the paranoid deep end, “I was just thinking that we should see about getting you a mate.”

              Harley almost fell into the soup.

              “What!?” A couple of the other people in the kitchen looked over to make sure Harley and I were okay. They quickly returned their focus to their work upon seeing that we were both fine, “Are you trying to get me to be soup flavored? Damn…” He shook his head hard, “Why under the _stars_ would you even be thinking like that?”

              “I was just thinking how cute it would be if you had someone to cuddle up with.” I poked the side of his head.

              “I already have four of you little shits practically killing each other for that honor.” Harley grumbled, “I don’t need another one.”

              “But you’d make cute babies with any bitty!” I protested.

              “hhhhhmmm!?” Hiro slid up next to us, “bitties? babies? is there something you haven’t informed the marvelous hiro of mama?”

              “I was just saying that Harley would make a good dad.” I grinned while Harley brightened even more orange. He reminded me of a fresh carrot, “I think you and Snooze would make good uncles too!”

              “brother!” Hiro crossed his arms and glared at Harley, “have you been keeping secret feelings from your family?!?”

              “No!” Harley choked, “She’s the one inventing this sick fantasy!”

              “sick…mimi?” Snooze had teleported beside my work station.

              “Ughhh…..” Harley muttered a long string of curses under his breath before speaking louder, “If we’re going to talk about love lives, I swear to the stars I’ll start talking about yours!”

              “I don’t have one.” I frowned, “Thanks for reminding me!”

              Rosie and Ilia laughed under their breaths at that.

              “Exactly.” Harley looked almost insufferably smug, “Well…there’s always that goatman.”

              “Asgore?” I spluttered, “You do realize I’ve only talked to the man a handful of times since I’ve known him.”

              “HIS MAJESTY?”              Papyrus called from across the kitchen, “WHAT?”

              “harley seems to be humoring the idea of the king and mama becoming a couple!” Hiro honestly seemed to think about it.

              “I barely _know_ him.” I tapped Harley’s nose.

              “good goat.” Snooze scratched the top of his skull before picking up a knife with his magic and dicing some more onions for me, “sad though.”

              “I’m just saying.” Harley shrugged, “You started pulling shit out of your ass, so why can’t I?”

              “I didn’t try to ship you with anyone in particular!” I smacked him softly with a spoon, “Even Sissy knew Sans for a period of time before she started dating him.”

              “they’re living together and raising a child together after only really being with each other a couple of months.” Hiro pointed out.

              “They also have very good chemistry.” A sharp pang of envy slice through me at that. The way Sans and Sissy just seemed to click with ease made me yearn for a deep connection of my own, “I’m not saying Asgore is a bad guy. He’s respectable, honorable, kind.” For some reason, the kitchen seemed to have gone silent, “I don’t know him that well though. I wouldn’t _mind_ getting to know him better of course, but jeez Harley…”

              “Well….I suppose that is a good thing to hear.” A familiar voice made me stand up straight.

              Asgore’s frame filled the door. A wry, amused grin made his face look more lively than usual, but the somber drooping of his shoulders kept the air around him gray. He was dressed for work in formal attire that would make the President jealous.

              _Shhhiiit…._

              “Hello y- Asgore.” I tried my best to hide my blush, “Ummm….how much of that did you hear?”

              “He only showed up for the last part.” Rosie whispered to me.

              “YOUR MAJESTY!” Papyrus grinned and hugged the tall goat monster, “HOW WONDERFUL TO SEE YOU!”

              “It’s good to see you too Papyrus.” Asgore patted his back, used to the young skeleton’s affections, “Miss-“ Asgore paused and took a deep breath, “Olivia, you mentioned that you couldn’t run the pie due to an increase of customers, and you asked if I could come by to pick it up. Is now a bad time?”

              “Of course not!” My laugh sounded more brittle than thin, cracked glass, “It’s in the back. We’re actually kind of in a lull anyways. I’ll be right back guys.”

              Glaring at my smug looking Lil’ Bro before turning my focus elsewhere, I walked over to the king.

              “Right this way.” I smile and gestured towards the back.

              Needless to say, I felt **_very_** awkward in this situation. How on earth could I explain that conversation without making it awkward!?

              “I’m sorry you had to overhear that.” I began, “Harley just mentioned something a bit…ridiculous.”

              “It’s quite alright. You didn’t speak ill of me after all.” A sad look flickered across Asgore’s face, “It’s nice to hear what others genuinely think about me. Between humans hating me for my outward appearance and my magical talents and monsters placing me on the pedestal disguised as a throne, few ever truly speak their mind about me. It’s also been a while since someone called me respectable, honorable, and kind. Toriel would most certainly disagree.”

              _Right, the ex-wife._

              “I heard she moved to Blackridge.” I quickly darted into the back and pulled out the pie. Handing it to him, I tried my best to gauge his reaction.

              “She did….I told her I would be willing to move, but Grayridge is a very important city to be established in.” Asgore sighed, “She doesn’t want to see me. She doesn’t want to damage our people’s standing….Thus, she made the decision to move.”

              _Doesn’t want to see him? How bad was their break-up?_

              I bit back the insensitive questions before they could tumble out of my mouth. Pieces of the puzzle that was the King of the Underground were missing, and I couldn’t just rush towards attaining them without hurting others in the process.

              “Well….” I lightly punched his chest like Sissy would’ve done. Appearing to be positive was one of the only things I was good at, so I was glad to see the soft smile that came across his face, “Like I said! We’re all here for you your majesty….and I didn’t call you by your name again. Sorry.”

              “It’s quite alright Miss-“ Asgore cut himself off and laughed, “We’re both still getting used to one another. If you are as open to getting to know each other as you said, we should become more comfortable with informalities eventually.”

              “I am!” I replied, holding my hands up like that would actually further drive home my point, “Life can be rough sometimes- especially for monsters. If I can help you in any way, I’d love to do so!”

              “Thank you Olivia.” Asgore nodded.

              “Anyways.” I rubbed the back of my neck, “You said that I could just make you anything, so I made you our Friday special- a milk chocolate banana pie. I hope you like it!”

              “It’s bound to be delicious.” Asgore smiled. He really hadn’t been in Chez Newmore very often. That didn’t bother me in the slightest though. He was a busy man; thus, I sincerely doubted the idea that he’d have much free time.

              “We’ll see.” I winked, “You have to call and tell me how you like it. Promise!”

              “How about we have tea the next time you’re free instead?” Asgore offered, “it’s been a while since I managed to sit down with someone and just chat.”

              “Sure! Do you mind if I bring the bitties?” Hiro and Harley had actually been a bit jealous after learning of the small scale adventure Snooze and I had with him.

              “Of course not.” Asgore shook his head.             

              “I’ll message you when I have free time then.” _Huh….a tea break with one of the most powerful people in the world….Mom and Dad would’ve killed for this opportunity if they were still here._

              “I can’t wait.” Asgore checked his watch, “But I am going to be late to another dull meeting….did I say ‘dull’ aloud?” He blushed, “It’s very important, but one can only listen to the same people spout out the same rhetoric over and over without finding it a little…repetitive.”

              “Hey, I had to work as my sister’s secretary for a while. Trust me when I say I understand.” I patted his arm, “Go on then!”

              “Thank you again for the pie. I’m certain my colleagues and I will enjoy it. Have a pleasant day Olivia.”

              I escorted Asgore to the side door and made sure that everything was somewhat peaceful outside before letting him leave. It would be bad for the king to be shot or stabbed when his back was turned after all.

              “DO YOU THINK HE’LL LIKE THE PIE?” Papyrus asked, scaring the daylights out of me. He caught me when I stumbled back with a yelp, “OH! I’M SORRY MY BRILLIANT FRIEND. I DIDN’T MEAN TO CATCH YOU OFF GUARD.”

              “Sans would be proud of that accidental word play.” I snorted, standing up properly, “I hope he’ll like it. I used the recipe for it that Sissy made instead of my own. It should be amazing.”

              Sissy and Granny had been the basis for my muscle memory cookbook. The two had ended up teaching me a lot of tips and tricks while I began to carve out my own culinary flare. Sissy’s one weakness had been chocolate and bananas before she had gotten hooked on mini pancakes and s’mores. I’d ended up making it for more than one celebratory occasion.

              “I WONDER….NEXT TIME COULD I TRY TO MAKE THE ECHO FLOWER PIE _MY_ MOTHER TAUGHT ME HOW TO MAKE?” Papyrus cocked his head.

              “Echoflower pie?” _What’s an echoflower?”_

“YES! REALLY IT WAS QUITE DELICIOUS. ECHOFLOWER PETALS HAVE A NATURAL SWEETNESS TOO THEM THAT CAN EASILY ADD TO ANY SWEET TREAT. THE STEMS ARE POISONOUS HOWEVER, SO ONLY A FEW BRAVE SOULS- LIKE MY MOTHER AND MYSELF- HAVE EVER DARED TO USE THEM IN FOOD! I THINK A FEW MONSTERS HAVE BEGUN GROWING THEM ON THE SURFACE IN GREENRIDGE…HMMM…”

              “We can order some if you want to tinker.” I shrugged, “We could even test run it as a Saturday dessert if you’re certain you can make something that doesn’t have poison in it.”

              “OH I’D TEST RUN ANYTHING I MADE A FEW DOZEN TIMES! ECHOFLOWERS MAKE MOST MONSTERS ILL, BUT SKELETONS JUST GET A BIT OF LOWER SPINE DISCOLORATION. WE ACTUALLY SOMETIMES USE THE STEM AS A WAY TO….AHEM….CLEAR OUT ANY CORRUPT MAGIC IN OUR SYSTEM.”

              _Soooo….their stems are also skeleton laxatives….interesting._

“I can’t wait to try a piece Papyrus!” My enthusiasm was real. It was always a delight to taste foods created by my staff and friends. A couple of the dishes had actually managed to worm their way onto our menu, “I demand first dibs on the first success!”

              “BUT OF COURSE! WHO ELSE IS WORTHY FOR THE FIRST SLICE OF WHAT IS BOUND TO BE A MASTERPIECE!?” Papyrus laughed.

              “Why no one.” I elbowed him in the ribs affectionately

              “NYEH HEH HEH.”

              _I’m glad Papyrus is my friend._ I tugged the skeleton into a quick hug.

              “Now!” I stood up straight and put my fists on my hip, “We need to get ready for our upcoming dinner service!”

              “YES!” He beamed.

              The rest of the day went smoothly. Sissy texted me a gossip column talking about how King Asgore was visiting his “human lover” at her workplace. They didn’t get my name or the name of my resturant right, and they had just completely blown everything out of proportion.

              _Are these guys that desperate for news?_

              I laughed it off and put my phone away.

              “I’ll take out the trash now!” I called out, “Please don’t break anything guys!”

              I heard something clatter to the floor.

              “…oooppps….”

              “snnooooozzze!”

              “Jeez.”

              “OH NO!”

              _And I’m never putting Snooze on dish duty again._

              It took a couple of trips to throw all of the trash out. While I was in the back alley, I was shocked to find that someone or something had been digging through our trash. A thick, greasy slime clung to the dumpster and it made a soft trail that disappeared into the darkness of the alley.

              _I think…some monster is homeless….._

              Feeling bad for my mystery customer, I went inside and grabbed some of the extra food we would’ve had to trash. I wrapped it up and placed it outside.

_Here. I hope this helps some....Poor thing._


	6. Meetings and Encounters

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I own nothing. Full disclaimer/links can be found in Ch1
> 
> Annnddd now to go work on F&S before tackling the next chapter of this because shit in that effects the stuff in this :P I forgot how annoying it is to have two different stories going on at the same time in universe XD  
> (Also, My head cannon is that Asgore has a tattoo on his back that allows him to basically pull his trident out of nowhere, so that's why what happens happens.)

              “Ohmygodhe’ssocuuuuttteee.” I squealed over the adorable pictures Sans had posted of Greyson. The little guy seems to have taken to the bitties, and there were a lot of images with him just cuddling with one of them or laughing at something they did, “He’s such a cute baby.”

              “WHAT?” Papyrus perked up from where he had been dozing on the couch. We had the day off because it was a national holiday, so both of us managed to catch up on a lot of sleep, “DID MY BROTHER POST MORE PICTURES OF THE LITTLE HUMAN!?”

              “He did.” I waved Papyrus over, “Come see.”

              “i want to see too mama!” Hiro climbed up my pajamas to get onto my shoulder, “awwww….”

              “What’s all this chaos about?” Harley yawned, almost tripping over one of my shoes as he walked into the living room/ kitchen area, “Jeez…Snooze?!”

              Sure enough, the little green eyed bitty poked his head out from inside my old shoe. He gave Harley a confused look. When my Lil’ Bro couldn’t figure out what the hell to say to him, Snooze just curled back up in my shoe. The little sleepy hadn’t felt well for the past few days, so he tended to nap more than normal. I was just glad he didn’t have speck or anything equally severe.

              “Annnnddd he’s just gotten weirder.” Harley shook his head, “Anyways, chaos? What caused it?”

              “These pictures!” I pointed to my phone, “Come look!”

              I knew that _technically_ speaking the bitties and I needed to get ready to go have tea with Asgore, but the adorableness that was my nephew was too strong to resist. Personally, I _loved_ the images of the little sweetie cuddling Snuggle who was often already entangled in Flowey’s grasp.

              _…..Flowey and Snugglee….Blake would kill me if he ever learned of the image I just had in my head._ I couldn’t contain the quick, bright blush that coated my cheeks or the quick giggle that escaped my lips. No one paid me any attention though. They were all too preoccupied watching the video Sans had took of Sissy quietly humming Greyson to sleep- made even more adorable by the usually cranky Raze beginning to doze off in the background too!

              “their house is never boring!” Hiro laughed, “of course, it could never compare to the shining radiance that is _our_ home, but still…it’s nice to see our amazing aunt so happy.”

              “I can’t agree with you more bud.” I winced when I noticed the time, “ _But_ all of us need to get ready. Papyrus, you’re going to train with Undyne right?”

              “YES! IT’S BEEN A WHILE SINCE I LAST SPARRED WITH ANYONE!” Papyrus seemed a bit perturbed by the idea, “I ABSOLUTELY CANNOT LET MY OLD SKILLS RUST!”

              “Well, break a leg!” I nudged his upper arm with my head affectionately, “NOT literally please.”

              “I’LL TRY MY BEST TO REMAIN IN TIP TOP SHAPE!.....UNDYNE CAN GET A BIT ROUGH WITHOUT MEANING TOO HOWEVER.” Papyrus crossed his arms in thought, “I CAN USE THIS FOR SOME BARRIER TRAINING!”

              “I thought you scored lowest in the barrier portion of the royal guard evaluation?” Papyrus had explained to me once that to become even a low ranking member of the royal guard a monster had to meet certain strict requirements on their abilities. He’d scored low in quite a few areas, but barriers had by far been his worst performance.

              “WHICH IS EXACTLY WHY I NEED TO IMPROVE OF COURSE!” Papyrus laughed and tapped my nose, “AND _YOU_ NEED TO GO GET DRESSED….UNLESS YOU WANT TO MEET THE KING IN YOUR LITTLE CUIPD COVERED PAJAMAS!”

              “Oh hush! You have little pirates!” I flicked his chin. We briefly began a tickle fight that ended when Harley cleared his throat and pointed to a clock, “Drat…Well, stay safe Papyrus. I mean it! I’ll text you when I get to Asgore’s, and you’d better text me when you get to Undyne’s!”

              “OF COURSE!”

              Asgore and I had decided for us to enjoy our little tea break at his house to avoid eavesdroppers and gossips listening in on our conversation. The tiny bit of silence would be a slice of paradise in the city where everyone knows what everyone else is doing and who they’re doing it with and why they’re doing it in the first place.

              “I almost wish we could teleport.” I carefully braided my hair, “Then we could avoid all of this trouble in the first place.”

              “mimi’s sissy doesn’t like teleporting.” Snooze tugged at the long-sleeved turtleneck I had put him in, “would you?”

              “Ummm….” I thought about the way Sissy described teleporting through Sans’s “shortcuts” and quickly decided, “Probably not. Humans don’t do well without gravity.”

              “It would be more convenient though.” Harley tugged his beanie on and flicked his hood up, “We could avoid a lot of people that way. Sorry though, I don’t think any of us can teleport someone so large…”

              “You know…if you weren’t small enough to ride on the palm of my hand, I’d be offended by that.” I stuck my tongue out at him, “Is everyone set?”

              Since this was just a friendly little chat, I had opted for comfort, so I only wore 5 inch heels. Thankfully, I had managed to find an old, adorable lace dress that went well with the nudie pumps. _I hope I don’t look too formal or anything…Hmmmm…_ Double checking to make sure my make-up wasn’t _too_ overdone, my bitties eventually grew a wee bit frustrated with me and insisted I was fine.

              “mama,” Hiro tugged on my hand, “you’ll always look _super_ pretty no matter what you wear! It’s unavoidable.”

              “mimi’s too pretty to be ugly.” Snooze agreed, nodding his head.

              “So let’s go Mom.” Harley had smoked an entire bitty cigarette while I hesitated, “You look fine. We look fine. Everything’s fine…well…we’re _not_ going to be fine if we don’t hurry up. We’re already going to be a little bit late.”

              _He’s right._ I quickly gathered the bitties and grabbed my purse. _Like always….I wonder if this is what it’s like to live with a know-it-all?_

              “mimi.” Snooze rubbed his head against my neck, “you smell really nice.”

              “Do I normally smell stinky?” I chuckled while sidestepping to the left to avoid a couple who were only a few hand strokes away from nailing each other to the side walk.

              “no…different though.” I felt Snooze tap his hand against my neck while he thought, “more foody.”

              “You do typically smell like a kitchen threw up on you.” Harley agreed from where he was struggling to keep an excited Hiro from tumbling off of my shoulder, “That’s just a hazard of your job though.”

              “True.” It didn’t help that a couple of my more clumsy staff typically ended spilling the contents of at least one plate on me _at least_ once a week, “I can actually smell like my really nice body wash for once instead of smelling like soup!”

              “Hooray.” Harley chuckled.

              The rest of our walk was filled with the normal chatter that ebbed and flowed in the apartment. It was a bit weird not having Papyrus around to throw in his own opinions, but we managed to keep the conversation going. No one harassed us on the way to Asgore’s. I think most people didn’t recognize me because of the lack of soft or bright colors I usually wore around town. The expensive shades Nadia had gave me also contributed to my stealth by hiding the top half of my face.

              _I can’t **wait** for the Newmores to become yesterday’s news._

              Asgore lived in one of the nicer suburban areas dotted around the city. The neighborhood had mostly been dominated by monsters, but I did spot a few human children playing with monster children of all kinds. The sweet scene gave me hope that images like these would become more normal in the years to come.

              “Olivia.” Asgore- dressed in casual attire- was checking his mail when I approached. For some reason, a king in a _very_ poorly designed “Hawaiian” shirt made me laugh, “Hmm?”

              “N-Nothing.” I bit the inside of my cheek, “Sorry I’m a bit late. Papyrus and I ended up getting distracted by some new pictures of Greyson. They were just too precious to ignore.”

              “Greyson…Do you mean Grey?” Asgore cocked his head. The way his ears shifted a little reminded me of the way a dog’s would.

              “I think that’s the nickname they went with….though…he’s probably got quite a few nicknames at this point.” I laughed, “Have you heard all of the names they call each _other_? The poor little guy probably doesn’t even know which is his real name at this point.”

              “They are fond of nicknames.” Asgore agreed, “I can’t tell you how many her bitties have given me in the short time they’ve known me.”

              “You’re going to end up with more you know.” I winked at him.

              “Well, I suppose I should be flattered you’ve all welcomed me into your circle so easily.” Asgore gestured to his front door, “I’ll get the tea started.”

              Asgore’s house was more sparsely decorated than I expected. Everything seemed a little too perfectly place, and I quickly realized that someone had probably decorated his house for him. The only sign that it wasn’t some kind of showcase were the awkwardly colorful frames that held child made drawings and pictures of a younger Asgore and Toriel. A couple even had the two with their paws on the shoulders of two children- one human, one goatchild.

              “I didn’t know you were a dad.” The human looking back at me from the picture reminded me a little bit of unnamed child who was found dead just inside the barrier.

              “Both of my children are no longer in this world I’m afraid.” Asgore tried his best to keep his voice steady, but I heard the slight waver, “They died, and shortly afterwards, my marriage with Toriel began to fracture. She eventually drifted away from me permanently.”

              “I’m sorry to hear that.” I frowned. _It’s sad that she won’t even let him have a chance at making a mends for whatever happened._ My bitties seemed as lost as I was in what to say next. Ultimately, I decided to speak what I felt to be the truth, “You were probably an excellent dad Asgore.”

              He almost dropped the tea kettle.

              “asgo?” Snooze pouted. A small burn had appeared on Asgore’s paw.

              “Your majesty!” I hurried over and grabbed his wrist. The only way I managed to move the towering monster was because he was still in shock, “We need to get some cold water on this.”

              “Ah…I apologize for this.” Asgore let me run my hands over his paw to help the water spread across the deep burn, “How embarrassing.”

              “Please be a little more careful man.” Harley teleported onto Asgore’s shoulder and patted the side of his head, “None of us are particularly gifted with healing abilities.”

              “I’m sorry.” Asgore repeated. A dark look clouded his faced briefly, “It’s just been a while since I last spoke about my family.”

              “No, I’m sorry.” I sighed, “I’m the one who startled you with the random topic. I was just thinking about how much the pictures remind me of the ones in Granny’s house- thought it might make a decent icebreaker….sorry.”

              “It’s quite alright.” Asgore chuckled, “No harm-“

              “You’ve got a burn on your hand.” I pointed out.

              “Still no foul.”

              After _that_ incident, I made sure to keep our conversation _far, far away_ from discussing family- especially his. It was obvious just talking about it still pained him- even after all of this time. Then again, one never truly recovered from family members dying or leaving. One only learns to just deal with it after battling inner demons to find acceptance with the whole thing.

              We talked about the changes happening in businesses as well as the recent increase in bitty fighting rings. Since more and more bitties were getting adopted, more and more were being _abandoned_ by owners who couldn’t afford to take care of them. This left them like sitting ducks for the ringleaders who were always eager for a fresh face to throw into the ring. That discussion had probably been the darkest part of our conversation. Eventually, we began to talk about an old friend of his: W.D. Gaster.

              “Gaster was a good man….if a bit misguided.” Asgore sighed taking a sip of his tea, “He….just… spiraled out of control after Verdana died. Alphys and I tried our best to help him, but in the end, things ended poorly for him. We never even found the body.” Asgore smiled once he realized that Snooze had decided his left arm was just the _best_ place to doze, “Still, at least Sans was okay after all of that madness. I know Gaster would’ve never forgiven himself if one of his sons had died along with him.”

              “I see.” I looked at my nails while I thought. It was equal parts amazing and terrifying to learn more about the skeleton brother’s father. Papyrus spoke very little about the mystery skeleton man from his past, and Sans seemed to absolutely revile his father, “Thank you for telling me about him!”

              “Of course.” Asgore nodded his head, “I don’t mind discussing old colleagues- especially ones as colorful as Gaster and Verdana.” Asgore chuckled, “Dana could always make the other monsters laugh. We were sad when she was murdered. It’s good to see that Papyrus seems to carry on her positivity at least.”

              “Infectious positivity at that!” I agreed.

              “the great papyrus is hard to beat in the positivity area.” Hiro chewed on a hard candy, “he’s also quite brilliant in other areas as well!”

              “He’s getting better at cooking.” Harley agreed, taking a sip of his own small cup of tea, “And he’s getting better at maintaining the film over the holes in his hands.”

              “dede is good.” Snooze murmured, “really kind.”

              “He’s one of a kind. That’s for sure.” I supposed that bright optimism and kindness was what brought the two of us together. Two younger siblings trying their best to be the sunshine for their more grumpy older siblings bonded over a mutual passion and a few key personality traits, “I don’t think I could ever imagine a life without him as my best friend.”

              “He truly was a beacon of hope in the Underground….despite his more energetic personality turning away more than a few people.” Asgore smiled fondly, “It’s truly amazing to see how well he’s adapting. If only other monsters were able to adapt as quickly.”

              “How are _you_ doing?” I twisted a stray bundle of hair around my finger, “It’s got to be rough on you…”

              “Sometimes I truly wish that the mantle of king could just be handed to anyone else.” Asgore admitted quietly, “I could never forgive myself for doing it however. My duty to my people supersedes all else.”

              “Hey now.” Harley flicked a small crumb at Asgore, “You won’t be able to do much if you’re sick or stressed out. Take better care of yourself man.”

              “yes!” Hiro stood up and waved his arms around to emphasize their point, “even the greatest, strongest of heroes require their rest my kind king!”

              “mmhmm…” Snooze nodded in agreement.

              “Don’t forget that.” I patted the top of his paw, “Your no help to anyone in a hospital bed.”

              “I’ll try.” Asgore nodded.

              Eventually, the tea grew cold, and our time together slowly winded down. Asgore seemed hesitant to let me walk around alone at night, but I was even more hesitant to take him with me. _What if he got hurt?_

              “I’ll be fine.” Asgore flexed the muscles in his hand and I saw a deep red tattoo glow on his arm, “I just wish to make sure that you and your bitties arrive at your destination safely.”

              “Well…I suppose you could walk me to the restaurant at least.” I relented, “I need to pick up the bills.”

              Asgore agreed to those terms. The walk from the restaurant to my apartment was much shorter than the walk from his house to the restaurant to the apartment.

              “Are you certain your feet don’t hurt?” Asgore eyed my heels while he locked the door.

              “my magnificent mother has worn higher heels for longer periods of time!” Hiro scoffed like Asgore had insulted me, “such weak heels shall no reduce her to tears so easily!”

              “In other words,” I chuckled, “I’m fine. Really. I’ve strutted through this town in eight inch stilettos for six hours. This is nothing.”

              More than a few people gave us weird looks as we passed, but Asgore, the bitties, and I were wrapped up in a debate about different kinds of pie. He had enjoyed the milk chocolate banana pie and seemed interested in swinging by during a dinner service to taste some of the other kinds of pie we served. _Who would’ve thought that a person could have a conversation about pie for twenty minutes?_

              “Here we are.” I spotted Chez Newmore easily, “Thank you for walking me Asgore. I think I have it from here.”

              “Alright. Good evening Olivia.” Asgore nodded politely, “Please do hurry home. I’d hate for you to be out late alone at night.”

              “I’ll be swift.” I promised.

              I actually wouldn’t be as swift as I had hoped. I only had the key to the side entrance for some reason. Then I remembered that Papyrus had lost his front entrance key, so we had the locks changed. I was still waiting on my key. The side alley had rarely been an issue for me in the past. Thus, I darted into it without any fear at all.

              I really should’ve paid more attention.

              A dark, murky figure hung behind the dumpster, hidden by the early evening shadows. It looked like a melted figure in a billowing black, long-sleeved gown. I couldn’t see its head, but the stark whiteness of the creatures hands hinted towards the fact I was looking at a monster.

              “Excuse me?” I called out. The figure seemed to be hunched over something, desperately crackling out some garbled language, “Are you alright?”

              Orange and blue orbs appeared out of the darkness. A sharp chill went down my spine.

              “Asgore!” I called back over my shoulder. _Please don’t have wandered out earshot please!_ I kept my eyes trained on what seemed to be an almost frenzied monster. My legs seemed to be locked in place, “ASGORE!”

              The figure lunged forward ever so slightly, but a tall shadow cut off the remaining light of the alley. Immediately, I remembered how to breathe when a strong, furred arm wrapped around me and pulled my bitties and I close. A long, vicious looking trident stood between my would be attacker and the five of us. My bitties were just as stunned and scared as I was.

              “Begone!” Asgore’s deep bellow practically shook the bricks. The figure’s eyes flickered ever so slightly before it warped out of shape and vanished, “Olivia? Are you alright?”

              “Mmm-MMm…Mmmhmm.” I nodded, trying my best to keep myself from fainting, “J-Jeez…haha….that….that was scary….” My body was shaking.

              “It’s alright.” Asgore’s strong hand on my back anchored me down some, “Nothing will harm you. I promise.”

              The soft words promising protection helped me get myself together quicker.

              “Thank you.” I finally breathed. I focused on my bitties, “guys?”

              “good father?” Snooze cocked his head.

              “The hell?” Harley grumbled, “What kind of fucking creep was that?”

              “what a horrible creature!” Hiro wailed, clinging to my neck, “i’m sorry mama! i was just…too…ahh…”

              “It’s fine Hiro.” I patted his head to quiet him down some. I looked back at Asgore, who still wielded the red trident. He slid the trident up the back of his shirt, but I was surprised to see it seem to vanish as it slid up, “Did you recognize them?”

              “I’m afraid I didn’t get a good look at the monster.” Asgore frowned, “They…seemed rather familiar however….hmmm…”

              “bitty.” Snooze pointed to where a disoriented bitty stumbled out from behind the dumpster. It was a poppy that had an obvious case of speck.

              “Oh no!” I hurried over caught the little guy. He was burning up in my hands, “We need to get the CC.

              “I’ll escort you.” Asgore said firmly. I didn’t protest this time. I wasn't stupid enough to make the same mistake twice.


	7. Willoughby

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I own nothing. Full disclaimer/ links can be found in Ch1
> 
> .... :3 You're going to hate me so much after this xD

              Willoughby- Papyrus decided on the name- wouldn’t recover quickly because of how severe his case of speck was, but he would eventually recover. Velour and Karli noted that it seemed like the monster Asgore and I encountered in the alley way had been- unsuccessfully- trying to treat the bitty with monster magic. The two bitty experts decided that the monster had to be unaware that monster magic- unless it was broken down to its simplest form like it was in monster candy- wouldn’t be able to treat the bitty’s illness. Thus, Willoughby progressively got worse and worse.

              “As kind as the monster’s intentions probably were, his ignorance could’ve cost this little guy his life.” Velour finished rubbing some ointment on a deep crack on top of Willoughby’s head, “It’s a good thing you found him.”

              “I’m just glad that we didn’t leave before he stumbled out.” I cradled a tired Hiro close to my chest. Papyrus, who had Harley on his left shoulder and Snooze napping in his hands, watched Velour intently as she finished treating the injured bitty, “Snooze actually saw him.”

              “I STILL CAN’T BELIEVE THAT.” Papyrus admitted, “AS WONDERFUL AS OUR GREEN EYED LITTLE ONE IS, IT’S HARD TO SEE HIM BEING THAT PERCEPTIVE.”

              “He probably developed a sharp sense of hearing to let him know when it was safe to nap.” Harley joked with a dramatic shrug, “Either way, I’m just glad that Willoughby will be alright.”

              Willoughby still hadn’t regained consciousness though. Karli and Velour both insisted that this was normal for a bitty with such a severe case of speck.

              “There’s something else we should inform you of.” Karli cleared her throat, “If you intend to adopt him, you should be aware that…well…um…” Karli blushed bright pink.

              “He’s pregnant.” Velour finished, “Are you certain there wasn’t a second bitty with him?”

              “no two bitty.” Snooze murmured.

              “Asgore and I both checked before leaving.” I agreed. The king had an emergency phone call from one of his coworkers after we arrived, but he didn’t leave me until Papyrus showed up, “He was alone.”

              “DOES THAT MEAN…HIS…MATE IS SOMEWHERE OUT THERE ALONE?” Papyrus frowned, small orange tears forming in his eyes, “IF…HIS MATE IS STILL….”

              “We won’t get any answers until Willoughby wakes up.” Harley stroked Papyrus’s cheek, “It’s okay Pap. Shhh…”

              Willoughby took a little while to rouse, so Velour and Karli put us in one of the back rooms to wait for him to recover. The poppy was underweight despite being approximately- going of Velour and Karli’s predictions- three weeks pregnant. Bitties gave birth within three months. His height- 5 inches tall- also should’ve added more weight to the mix as well. Willoughby’s speck had left him open to a couple of infections in his wounds, but his baby was fine at least.

              “MmMmMm…” Willoughby curled in on himself quickly, gasping for air.

              “Hey, dude?” Harley reached out to place a calming hand on his shoulder. A sharp, serrated bone ripped through his sleeve, “What the fuck?” Harley pulled his arm back immediately.

              “willoughby?” Hiro successfully managed to rest a hand on the poppy’s skull, “it’s okay! you don’t need to be mean to harley or me or snooze or pappy or mama. we’re here to help you!”

              Slowly, Willoughby opened his eyes.

              They weren’t right. They weren’t right at all.

              Instead of the usual deep, watery black pools of most Papyrus type bitties, Willoughby’s eyes were completely dried out and faded to a gray color. His thin hand reached up and traced its way up Hiro’s arm. It paused on his face, feeling him.

              “A bAbY bLuE?” His voice was distorted, thin, “wHeRe…WhErE aM i?”

              “bitty care center.” Snooze clonked his head down right on top of Willoughby’s, “safe place.”

              Willoughby’s hand reached up to touch Snooze’s face as well. The sleepy purred under the gentle, searching touches. Harley approached again.

              “Hey.” Harley blew the newly formed dust out of the injury Willoughby had unintentionally inflicted, “It’s okay. Like Snooze said- this is a place where bitties don’t get hurt.”

              “bItTy CaRe CeNtEr…InIgO?” Willoughby reached out, “iNiGo? Is He HeRe ToO?”

              “No.” _He did have his mate with him._ My heartstrings were being knotted up. Papyrus had already begun to cry quietly in his chair, “We found you alone.”

              “nO….” Willoughby’s hands fell back to his chest. He traced them down to his stomach, “iNiGo..”

              Soft, gray tears fell down his face.

              “willoughby.” Hiro wrapped the upset poppy into a hug, “i’m _so_ sorry...”

              I started crying too.

              It Papyrus and I about five minutes to calm down. Harley managed to eventually calm down a frantic Hiro, but Willoughby still keened quietly even after he ran out of tears.

              “Oh jeez.” I ended up having to take my make-up off. I hadn’t left the house expecting to be reduced to tears after all, “Willoughby, is there any chance that Inigo would’ve left you to go do something?”

              “…aM i WiLlOuGhBy?” He asked.

              “mmhmm.” Hiro sniffled, “we didn’t know if you had a name or not, so we came up with some to call you until you could tell use you real name.”

              “……I….” Willoughby plunged his fingers into his eye sockets while he though, “…dOn’T hAvE oNe…..InIgO….wAs SuPpOsEd To GiVe Me OnE…..wE…cAmE fRoM a FiGhTiNg RiNg…..He…He PrOmIsEd To GeT uS oUt aFtEr hE lEaRnEd I wAs GoInG tO bE cAnCeLlEd….KiLlEd….We GoT oUt, bUt…He IsN’t HeRe.”

              _A bitty fighting ring…_

              Bitty fighting had become the new world’s favorite illegal past time. Since bitties were more aware and could strategize more than an animal could, humans would put on gladiatorial like fighting rings and stream them online. There had been a crackdown on the practice, but there was no way to stop bad owners from being bad owners. More than a few people would sell their bitties to a ring to make some fast cash. Others would actively go out and steal bitties to sell to them. The vile practice made my stomach churn.

              “Were you a prize bitty?” I had to ask.

              “hOw DiD yOu…?” Willoughby turned to look at me.

              “My sister has some bitties who escaped a fighting ring too.” I explained, “One was a fighter. The other was a prize.”

              “ThEy EsCaPeD tOgEtHer?”

              “Yes, but Raze- the fighter- is much stronger than most bitties. It made their attempt a bit easier.” In the end however, Raze couldn’t take care of Sunshine properly on his own. It was hard enough for a bitty with an owner to get by. A bitty trying to live on his/her own was practically unheard of.

              “lUcKy…” Willoughby sniffled, “WiLlOuGhBy……ArE yOu…TrYiNg To AdOpT mE?”

              “ONLY IF YOU WANT US TO.” Papyrus finally managed to get some words to come out properly.

              “new home.” Snooze rubbed the top of Willoughby’s head, “for you.”

              “it would be _no_ problem!” Hiro added, “we’d protect you from those vile cretins!”

              “Wait,” Harley held up a hand, “Willy, bud, you never answered Mom’s question. Do you think Inigo might’ve left to try and find something for you?”

              “…tHe LaSt TiMe I sAw HiM wAs AfTeR hE TuCkEd Me InTo A bOx To PrOtEcT mE….” Willoughby rubbed at his face, “h…E’s….pRoBaBlY…” Willoughby couldn’t finish his sentence.

              “Oh baby.” I couldn’t stand it anymore. I plucked Willoughby out of the small nest he was in and brought him close to me. He cringed and hyperventilated for a couple of seconds before realizing that he wasn’t about to be hurt, “I’m so sorry sweetheart. I’m _so_ sorry...I’m sure he’d be happy that you made it out okay.”

              Willoughby buried his face into my collarbone.

              “willoughby…” Fresh tears formed in Hiro’s eyes.

              “Uh oh.” Harley- who tried his best to pretend that the light orange tear stains on his face didn’t exist- pulled the baby blue and the sleepy into a hug. Snooze seemed relaxed at first glance, but upon closer inspection, one could notice how tightly he was clenching his fists and gritting his teeth while trying not to cry.

              “You can stay with us if you want Willoughby.” I murmured quietly, stroking his back comfortingly, “We’ll keep you safe.”

              “PROMISE!” Papyrus placed his hand over mine on Willoughby’s back, “YOU’LL BE FAMILY!”

              Willoughby seemed to like that a little bit.

              Karli and Velour were relieved to see that Willoughby was conscious. The purple squirrel’s face dropped when she told us that Willoughby was completely blind and that his voice would probably never fully recover. In a quiet whisper, Velour told Papyrus and I those two particularly bad injuries had to have been inflicted by humans. When we told her that he was a former prize bitty, her eyes teared up understandingly.

              “He might never really recover mentally.” Karli murmured to the two of us while Velour and our bitties helped Willoughby get changed, “Between being a prize bitty and losing his mate…I just want you to understand that he’ll be….well….bitties can suffer from PTSD too.”

              “WE SHALL HELP HIM IN ANY WAY WE CAN.” Papyrus rubbed his tears away, “NO MATTER WHAT!”

              “Agreed.” I nodded. Karli smiled at the two of us, “What?”

              “The Newmore sisters and their penchant for adopting some of the most broken bitties to come through these doors never ceases to amaze me.” She explained, placing one hand on my shoulder and the other on Papyrus’s, “You two are giving him a whole new world. Thank you.”

              “WE SHALL NOT DISAPPOINT!”

              “mimi, dodo.” Snooze called to us, “hihi says loulou’s done changing.”

              Willoughby had been tugged into a comfortable looking sweater and pajama bottom ensemble. One of the legs was rolled up to accommodate the bulky knee brace Willoughby would need to wear for a little while, and the deep purples and blues just made his thin white bones look even more emaciated. I ran a hand down my face to compose myself before walking over to the bitties with Papyrus centimeters behind me.

              “Willoughby,” There was one final question we needed to know, “Your baby, is it Inigo’s?”

              “nO.” Willoughby lightly shook his head, “sOmE vIcIoUs LiL’ bRo’s. ThE aUdIeNcE dIdN’t lIkE tHaT i WaS pReGnAnt, So….” He trailed off.

              “Ah…” Harley took a couple of steps back to give Willoughby some space, “Now things make sense.”

              “sOrRy…” Willoughby still cringed a little bit, like he expected Harley to lash out and hit him, “YoU sCaReD mE.”

              “There’s nothing wrong with that.” Harley tucked his hands into his pockets, “I’ll just keep about a foot between us until you get more comfortable with me being around.”

              “harley is really lazy, but he’s not a bad guy!” Hiro piped up, “i promise! he’s suuupppeerr protective and kind. you’ll see.”

              “MaYbE…” Willoughby said noncommittally.

              I got a text message from Asgore while Papyrus paid for the treatments. Harley rode on his shoulders with Hiro, so I cradled Willoughby in one arm to avoid him getting stressed out about the Lil’ Bro’s presence. Snooze was sitting on my shoulder with his back against my neck.

              **Asgore:** Is Willoughby alright?

              **Olivia:** Somewhat. He’s got a couple problems, but Pap and I plan on working with him to help him heal.

              **Asgore:** I’m glad to hear that. Please keep me updated on his progress.

              **Olivia:** Sure.

              **Asgore:** And let me know how I can help in anyway.

              **Olivia:** Thank you Asgore :)

              “oLiViA?” Willoughby shifted in my arm, “wHaT’s ThAt NoIsE?”

              “My phone….” I noticed he was trembling. Did my bell like notification alert sound similar to something he would hear in the bitty fighting ring? _I’ll be changing that then…and my alarms too._ Willoughby didn’t relax even after I put my phone on vibrate, “It’s okay Willoughby.”

              “bad noise.” Snooze glared at my phone as I put it into my pocket.

              “Apparently.” I sighed, “I’ll change it Willoughby.” I rubbed my thumb across his cheek comfortingly. The gentleness seemed to help him calm down just a little bit.

              “SoRrY.”

              “Willoughby.” I raised him high enough to press a kiss to the top of his head, “It’s no problem whatsoever. I promise. We’ll just try and take everything one day at a time okay?”

              Willoughby was quiet for the longest time.

              “tHaNk YoU.”

              “good bitty.” Snooze yawned.

              “WE’RE ALL SET!” Papyrus walked over, “LET’S GET WILLOUGHBY HOME SO HE CAN REST PROPERLY. HE COULD ALSO USE SOME OF THE MARVELOUS PAPYRUS’S HOME COOKING!”

              “FoOd?” Willoughby seemed to perk up just a tad.

              “Food.” I repeated, “As much of it as you need.”

              The walk back home consisted of Papyrus and I quietly making sure that Willoughby didn’t get overwhelmed. He’d been on the streets for a couple of weeks, so he was- thankfully- used to a lot of the noise. The poppy didn’t seem fond of hearing bells or horns however. The sounds always made him grit his teeth like he was in some kind of pain.

              Everyone relaxed a little bit once were tucked away safely behind our front door. Harley made himself scarce while I began to help Willoughby learn the layout of the apartment. Hiro and Snooze went to help Papyrus make dinner.

              “-and this is my room.” I made sure to stamp kind of loudly when I walked to try and help him gauge distances. It would probably take him a while to learn where everything was, but I would do anything I could to help him adapt quickly, “You can come in here whenever you want. You could even sleep in here if you want. Papyrus also lets bitties sleep with him. If you want a private place to snooze, we could try and build you something somewhere.”

              “…wHeRe DoEs HaRlEy SlEeP?”

              “Depends on what he’s feeling like doing.” I tried my best to figure out any kind of pattern Harley had when it came to where he slept. Really, he slept anywhere that was comfortable enough once he got tired.

              “I could lock myself down to one area if that’ll make you comfortable.” Harley’s voice made both Willoughby and I jump, “Sorry, sorry. Papyrus just wanted me to come tell you that dinner is ready.”

              “hArLeY….” Willoughby sat up as much as he could in his weakened state from where he was cradled in my arms, “i’M…..i JuSt NeEd…”

              “Take as much time as you need pal.” Harley rubbed the cracks on his neck, “It took me a while to really get used to Hiro. The last baby blue I housed with didn’t particularly like me and seemed to like shoving me off of high places while I slept. I get that it’s a bit of a learning curve. Don’t rush it though.”

              _Harley had a bad experience with another baby blue?_

              He never seemed like Hiro bothered him- even back in the beginning of adopting him. Sure he was a bit mellower around Hiro, and he wasn’t as particularly chatty around him at first either. I just chalked it up to nerves for the longest time.

              “Anyways, Papyrus tried to make soupy spaghetti. He wants your honest opinion.” Harley stretched out his arms, “I’ll sleep on the couch by the way. I don’t mind.” With that, Harley sauntered off back towards the kitchen.

              “….mMmM….” Willoughby dug his fingers into his empty eye sockets again. It seemed to be a habit of his, “i MaKe HiM fEeL bAd…”

              “No you don’t.” I tsked, “You make him worry a little bit, but you don’t make him feel bad.”

              Willoughby didn’t look like he believed me. The somber look on his face lasted until we got to the kitchen. Once he smelled actual food, he seemed to perk up even more. He quickly devoured three bitty sized portions before Papyrus and I could even blink.

              “do you want more?” Hiro offered, rubbing Willoughb’s upper back affectionately, “i can get you some.”

              “nO tHaNk YoU.” Willoughby shook his head. He actually seemed a little bit content.

              Papyrus decided to have Hiro and Snooze sleep with him that night while I tried to help Willoughby adapt to his new sleeping environment. Harley- true to his word- slept on the couch.

              “Are you comfortable?” I asked after settling down beside the poppy.

              “mMmHhMhM….” He fell asleep rather quickly.

              Willoughby didn’t stay asleep long however. In less than an hour, he woke up in tears, sobbing quietly, murmuring Inigo’s name over and over. These little fits came and went throughout the night as Willoughby worked through a small portion of his emotions. Eventually, he began to cling to my shirt and whisper all of his fears and concerns and beg for my protection and love.

              He promised to be a good boy. He promised to do anything I asked of him. He just didn’t want to be hurt anymore. He didn’t want to lose anything anymore.

              “Shhhh….” I sat up around 3:30 and held Willoughby close to my chest while he cried, “You don’t need to make any of those promises Willoughby. I’ll protect you. Shhh….”

               I wasn’t strong like Sissy. I wasn’t smart like Nadia.

              I _would_ keep my promise though. Even if I ended up like Sissy did last Thanksgiving, I would try my damndest to keep Willoughby and his child safe- maybe even help him heal in the process.

              At some point, Harley poked his head in to check on us. Willoughby had fallen asleep again, so he managed to creep close without startling him.

              “Will he really be okay?” Harley whispered.

              “I don’t know.” I answered honestly. My smiled was so forced it was painful, “We’ll just have to try our best and see won't we?"


	8. ARPB13 ARFB28

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I own nothing (Except for Atlantic and Tinsel). Full disclaimer/links can be found in Ch1
> 
> The few times I saw people mention Inigo in a positive light made me laugh. This chapter explains why.

              In the end, I supposed a child never really stopped seeking out guidance. Willoughby’s condition was just too much for Papyrus and I to handle with how little experience we had with traumatized bitties, so after hours of failed research, the two of us decided to head towards our last resort: calling our older siblings. It took a bit of bickering between Papyrus and I- he for the idea, myself against it- that lead to Willoughby nearly having a panic attack because of the raised tensions in the kitchen to make me sign on with the idea.

              “MY BROTHER SAYS WE CAN SWING BY TONIGHT.” Papyrus told me, “THEY’VE ALREADY TOLD RAZE AND SUNSHINE ABOUT…WELL…” Papyrus looked at where Hiro let Willoughby, who was more than likely going off of poppy instincts, fix his scarf. Snooze napped against the poppy which seemed to help him remain somewhat calm.

              “Willoughby.” Ilya offered the poppy some of the chocolate from the kitchen in a low whisper. Now usually, I was- for lack of a better term- a hardass in the kitchen. I didn’t like ingredients being wasted, but Willoughby was a special case. My staff took one look at the broken poppy and apparently decided that he would become the new spoiled prince in the back. No joke. Even the ex-con slipped him things when he thought I wasn’t looking (They never seemed to realize that I was _always_ looking), “You really liked this chocolate yesterday. I grabbed too much for this desert. Why don’t you take it so it doesn’t go to waste?”

              “aRe YoU sUrE tHaT’s OkAy?” Willoughby cocked his head. Hiro giggled at the scene perfectly aware of what everyone was doing. My precious little baby blue even encouraged the new sweetness among my staff.

              “Mmmhmm.” Ilya nodded.

              “ThAnK yOu…” Willoughby took the bit of the chocolate from the little flaming sous chef with a timid smile.

              “It’s no problem.” Ilya’s flames brightened to a near gold color.

              Papyrus and I shared a look and just smiled ourselves. Willoughby still was far from “okay”, but he was getting better about being approached by other people. Harley still had to keep his distance however. That didn’t stop my Lil’ Bro from quietly staying within catching range in case of an emergency though.

              It was after 10 when we finally managed to get everything cleaned up. Having Papyrus around really helped me feel more comfortable locking up on my own….especially after what happened with Asgore. I stared at the area where the monster had been, but nothing new stuck out at me. There was still that trace of slime that let me know that monster was still raiding our dumpsters. _I wonder if he only attacked me that time because of Willoughby…._

              “mama!” Hiro hopped from Papyrus’s shoulder onto my head, sliding down some of my hair to rest on my shoulder, “aha! i’m still as marvelous as ever. did you see that!?”

              “I did.” I giggled as his energetic hand motions made him accidentally tickle my ear. Willoughby’s hands were tangled in my hair to keep himself from falling, “We ready to go Papyrus?”

              “YES!” Papyrus beamed and offered his arm to me, “TO MY BROTHER’S HOUSE!”

              “shhh baby.” Snooze reminded Papyrus from where he was nestled in the tall skeleton’s red scarf.

              “We aren’t quite there yet kiddo.” Harley took a drag from his bitty cigarette, “It’s good that you remembered that we’ll have to be quiet though.”

              “That’s assuming Greyson is actually asleep.” The little guy’s sleeping pattern tended to go…well… everywhere. Some nights he’d be fine, but other nights he’d keep Sissy and Sans up for _hours_ , “Let’s hope for the best though!”

              “YES! NYEH HEH!” Papyrus threw his fist up in the air in agreement, causing Harley to slide backwards off of his arm, “OH! SORRY HARLEY!”

              “It’s fine Pap.” Harley climbed back on without kicking up a fuss.

              The small house that Sans, Sissy, Greyson, Flowey, and 10 bitties called home looked nothing like the grandeur Sissy and I had while we were growing up. It was a compact home with little space between the two condos next to it. Sans had to have been taking care of the older building because it was the only rose to be found in this rotten garden of a street.

              “Hello Miss Olivia, Papyrus.” Cyan nodded at us politely after Atlantic opened the door. The hybrid hovered on an almost dog like cull, swaddled in a small, thick blanket, “Please keep your voices down. Greyson and Sans are asleep.”

              “Okay.” I responded in a lower voice while Papyrus just enthusiastically nodded in agreement, “Are the others asleep too?”

              “Everyone except for myself, Raze, Sunshine, Tinsel, Miss Josie, and my son are asleep. Miss Josie is working upstairs to wrap up some projects, and Tinsel and Atlantic were enjoying a…” Cyan sighed, “…horror movie marathon that will more than likely scar my child.”

              Atlantic made a slightly high pitched sound of annoyance, glaring at his father. Cyan merely glowered at him until he hurried away to go find Tinsel once more.

              “He’s growing more rebellious huh?” Harley teleported onto the ground beside him. Hands tucked in his pockets, Harley watched as Atlantic disappeared into another room, “I wonder where he got that from.”

              “Waltzer.” Cyan replied simply. He spotted Willoughby at last, “I’ll go get Sunshine. Please, have a seat.”

              “DO YOU NEED HELP WITH ANYTHING?” Papyrus offered.

              “No.” Cyan shook his head and smiled up at the tall skeleton fond, “Thank you for offering though.”

              Papyrus and I settled down on the couch with our bitties. Harley sat on a nearby chair far enough away for Willoughby to relax some. Hiro was guiding an anxious Willoughby around the living room floor, pointing out chairs, tables, and other obstacles that could trip him. Snooze trailed along behind them absentmindedly pointing out some smaller details that Hiro missed to further help Willoughby get some kind of mental landmarks to go by.

              “Hello?” Sunshine exited the kitchen with a smile that quickly faded. His flames almost seemed to turn gray, “You?” Raze bumped into his mate while following him out of the kitchen. Immediately noticing something was off, Raze’s eyes burned across the ground to find Willoughby.

              “ARPB13.” He said flatly. Willoughby flinched and curled in on himself at the sound of Raze’s voice.

              “…rAzOr…?” Willoughby’s voice wavered, “…iF…tHeN…sRpB143?”

              “Oh you poor thing.” Sunshine finally brightened back to his usual pale gold and rushed over to Willoughby’s side. Willoughby began to shake and all but sagged in relief against Sunshine when he felt that it was indeed the other former prize bitty holding him, “Oh dear….Raze…um…” Sunshine looked up at Papyrus and I, “Do you mind if I take him into the kitchen for a…private conversation?”

              “No.” I shook my head.

              “PLEASE DO!” Papyrus encouraged.

              “Thank you…It’s…” Sunshine shook his head, “Hard topics like these tend to be embarrassing.”

              Raze watched his mate escort the broken poppy in the kitchen with a numb look that sent shivers down my spine. Harley noticed how off Raze was behaving, so he teleported into the space between Raze and the rest of us. Raze just gave him a flat look.

              “What’s this look about?” Harley, trying his best to stay light-hearted, questioned the somber looking edgy, “What does ARPB13 mean?”

              “itz the code bitty ring ‘n gray use to identify bitties.” Raze was surprisingly forth coming. The hollow, dead look in his eyes that appeared when he looked down at his hands like they had blood on them made me dread what was coming next, “it’s ring, type, and number. ARPB13 means alpha ring prize bitty #13. the alpha ring was the first fightin’ ring in gray, and it was notorious for the first 12 prize bitties dying from lack of proper care. 13 lived on despite the poor conditions. he became more than a little popular after that.”

              “soo….” Hiro frowned, “he’s well known? the marvelous baby blue is confused.”

              “tell me, did he have 28 with him?” Raze seemed to be hunting for the bitty that wasn’t present.

              “I assume you’re talking about Inigo?” I asked.

              “inigo. pft.” Raze spat, “is that what that sack of shit decided to call himself.” Papyrus and I recoiled at the vitriol in his voice, “is he here? cause if he is, i’ll fucking kill him for existing.”

              “WHAT!?” Papyrus gasped. Harley’s eye glowed a dangerous shade of orange.

              “Why do you just wanna kill someone’s mate like that? Don’t you know how important he is to Willoughby?” Harley’s voice had a rough quality that reminded me of a serrated blade.

              “hmph, lemme tell you idiots a story.” Raze scoffed at us, “once upon a fucking time, there was a really popular prize bitty the audience just _loved_ to watch be tormented, so what do those human bastards do when the learn about the “tragic love affair” that was my relationship with sunshine? they create their own little ‘relationship’ to flaunt- only this one _isn’t_ a good one. the sickos took a hybrid bitty- part boss, part lil’ bro- that couldn’t stabilize for its life. thus, the two warring sides would fight for control. whenever the lil’ bro half was active, it was a vicious, cruel sack of shit that killed and killed and killed and killed without a care in the world.” Harley pulled Hiro and Snooze close and covered their ears despite their protests. Like Papyrus and I, he had a feeling of where this was going, “the other half was the most emotionally manipulative boss i think i’ve ever had the ‘pleasure’ of meeting. tch. all of us bitties knew the truth after seeing 13 treat 28 like he was the love of his life.” Raze pointed to his skull, “something in here broke, snapped, went kaput. his head couldn’t keep coping with the trauma of his reality, so he wrote a new story that 28 took _full_ advantage of.”

              “So…wait….does that mean that the Lil’ Bro Willoughby mentioned as the father of his kid is…”

              “inigo.” Raze spat the name like it was shit in his mouth, “or at least half of the bastard. bitties can't conceive if their body doesn’t register the body rubbing against them as safe. thus, it’s impossible for a bitty to be impregnated after a rape unless it was- and here’s the part that really grinds my spine- _their mate_. in his head, yeah, it was some vicious, evil other bitty that did this to him. in reality, it was the same bitty- Alpha Ring Fighter Bitty 28 also known as Jekyll and Hyde.”

              I wanted to puke. Papyrus looked like he agreed with me.

              “so, yeah, i wanna kill the bastard. he’s raped sunshine before too.” Raze’s low growl made my hair on the back of my neck stand up, “the bitch said you wanted our ‘help’. well the only advice i can give you is to get him a real therapist. some young restaurant owners ain’t gonna help him cope with the mental trauma going on up here.”

              “IF….THIS….28 WAS SO HORRIBLE WHY DID HE HELP WILLOUGHBY ESCAPE?” Papyrus questioned.

              “escape? is that what he thinks happened? jeez, his head’s all fucked up.” Raze snorted, “alpha ring got busted by the cops a couple of weeks ago. most of the bitties headed for the hills, so it’s not hard to believe that 28 made off with him in the chaos. he was probably looking for a new ring to join up with. those kinds of bitties- the ones who lose themselves to ring lifestyle- can’t cope with life outside. yer buddy willoughby is one lucky son of a bitch that- i’m guessin’ here- when 28 left him behind one time to go find a new ring, someone else picked him up. there’s no telling what would’ve happened to him otherwise.”

              _Oh my god._ I was crying a little bit. Papyrus was too. Raze actually seemed to soften just a little bit.

              “he needs a therapist- a good one.” Raze finished quietly, “but he’s got a better chance of recoverin’ with softies like you than bein’ on the streets.”

              With that, he left us alone in the living room to join the other bitties in the kitchen.

              “Does he always have to be such an asshole?” Harley griped. Hiro and Snooze finally tugged his arms away from them. They could finally hear again, “Oh? I forgot I was holding you.”

              “what was that for!” Hiro complained, “how can the marvelous baby blue help if he doesn’t know what happened!?”

              “It’s not the kind of thing you need to know bro.” Hiro looked ready to protest until he read the mood of the room, “Just trust me okay?”

              “LIVI….WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO?” Papyrus whispered to me, carefully keep his voice quiet enough to slide under the argument Hiro and Harley were having.

              “We could always see if there’s a therapist willing to take on a bitty patient.” I bit my lip, “Sissy might know someone. She has a lot of connections she forgets about.”

              “WOULD THAT REALLY HELP?”

              “If it’s as serious as Raze makes it out to be….it’s definitely out of _our_ league.” I sighed and took his hand in mine, “We’re going to give it our best right? That means providing him with any help he needs.”

              “MHM!” Papyrus nodded firmly.

              Deciding to maybe not bother Sissy with it, I sent a text to Asgore not expecting a reply until the next morning while we waited for the bitties to come back out into the living room. Tinsel and Atlantic popped by to let the excited half edgy, half ray coo over how cute Snooze was. That lasted for as long as Atlantic’s patience would hold and ended with an obviously jealous bitty tugging his companion out of the room. I almost missed my phone vibrating because of the resulting cooing fest Papyrus and I had over the whole thing.

              **Asgore:** Toriel is very skilled at helping other monsters recover from trauma. Before she became my queen, she acted as the Undergrounds primary therapist under Dr. Gaster.

              “Huh…” I blinked down at the message. _He actually texted me back this late._

              **Olivia:** Would she be willing to maybe help out Willoughby?

              **Olivia:** At least until we can find him a new therapist

              **Olivia:** I know she’s moving to Blackridge at the end of December

              **Asgore:** I can have Undyne ask her if you’d like.

              **Olivia:** Please! J J

              **Asgore:** I’ll let you know when I hear back from Undyne.

              **Asgore:** Please keep me posted about his condition. The wellbeing of all the creatures from the Underground is important to me.

              **Olivia:** I will your majesty!

              **Asgore:** Olivia.

              **Olivia:** Whoops! Sorry Asgore.

              “YOU’RE SMILING MY DEAR HUMAN FRIEND.” Papyrus, who was letting Snooze sleep on top of his head, observed while keeping Hiro and Harley separated from each other with his glove covered hands, “DID SOMETHING AMAZING HAPPEN?”

              “Queen Toriel might be able to help us out.” I explained, “She’s apparently good at it?”

              “OH YES!” Papyrus’s eyes dimmed just a little, “SHE WAS THE ONE WHO HELPED SANS AND I AFTER THE…ACCIDENT. IF ANYONE CAN HELP OUR LITTLE WILLOUGHBY, IT’S HER!”

              “Queen Toriel?” Harley turned his attention away from his argument with Hiro to jump into our conversation instead, “She’ll be helping us?”

              “She might be. Undyne is going to ask her for us.”

              “OH UM….” Papyrus forced a smile, “THAT MIGHT WORK.”

              “Papyrus?” I was about to ask him a question when I heard Sunshine and Willoughby exiting the kitchen.

              “-sO nIcE sUnShInE…” Willoughby walked side-by-side with the ray looking a little less stressed than when we had all walked in. Raze trailed behind the two almost protectively, “…I lIkE yOuR nEw NaMe…”

              “Thank you. Raze chose it for me.” Sunshine gave his mate a warm, affectionate look before resting a hand on Willoughby’s upper arm, “Please, call me if you need _anything_. Raze can easily teleport across Grayridge.”

              Willoughby didn’t flinch when Sunshine brushed some loose dust from the cracks on his head. _I guess their shared past makes it a little easier for him._ Raze glared up at Harley and motioned that he should probably stay far away from the poppy. Harley returned the glare with a ‘no duh’ look that ticked the edgy off slightly.

              “Please no fighting while Sans and Greyson are trying to sleep.” I intervened, scooping Harley up and dumping him on Papyrus’s shoulder, “We’ve already imposed enough on Sissy and Sans.”

              “It’s no trouble Olivia. You’re always welcome here.” Sunshine chastised me, “All of you.”

              “YOU MUST ADMIT THAT IT IS MORE THAN A LITTLE LATE.” Papyrus said, removing Snooze from his head and creating a small hammock for the bitty in his scarf, “WE SHOULD PROBABLY BE HEADING HOME. WE HAVE AN EARLY DAY TOMORROW!”

              “Please be careful walking home.” Sunshine warned as I picked Willoughby up gently. The flicker of approval that crossed the ray’s eyes while watching me handle Willoughby made me feel more confident that I wasn’t hurting him, “Also, mix some of this into something for him to drink before he goes to sleep.” Raze handed us me a tin, “It’ll help with the nightmares.”

              “how? magic? did you discover this sorcerer sunshine?” Hiro questioned from his position on my shoulder.

              “No.” Sunshine laughed, “Raze did actually. I have nightmares myself actually.” Sunshine became a little tense until Raze pulled him to rest against his chest, “He did some research on Josephine’s computer until he found a mixture that worked. It tastes horrible Willoughby, but I promise it helps.”

              “nOtHiNg CaN bE wOrSe ThAn ThE sEruM.” Willoughby and Sunshine both shuddered. Sunshine made a soft noise of agreement, “ThAnK yOu.”

              “It’s not a problem. We’re family now after all. Family looks out for each other.” Sunshine shot a look at Papyrus and I, “There’s no need to be ashamed of seeking help from your loved ones.”

              “We won’t do so again.” I promised. Sunshine seemed satisfied with that.

              The concoction that Sunshine and Raze gave us to give to Willoughby did actually work. Thankfully, it wasn’t anything habit forming, so he could drink it as needed whenever he needed to sleep without night terrors.

              We also got some good news the next day.

              Queen Toriel- who had actually been asked by Sissy- swung by Chez Newmore to pick Willoughby up for a little test run.

              “Hello there my child.” Queen Toriel angled herself down to get a good look at Willoughby from where he sat on my office desk. I watched from the door that linked my office to the kitchen with worry biting at my gut, “I’m Toriel. I was told there are some things you might need to discuss.”

              Willoughby hesitated and seemed to look around for someone familiar.

              “It’s okay Willoughby.” I promised him, “She’s good people. I figured you might want someone to talk to.”

              “Oh….” Willoughby looked at Toriel blankly. The sadness on her face made my heart ache for my new bitty even more, “OkAy…If YoU tHiNk It’Ll HeLp…”


	9. Beneath the Crown

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I own nothing. Full disclaimer/ links can be found in Ch1
> 
> Three things  
> 1) I changed some lore. This is an AU, so I don't mind doing so.  
> 2) I swear I don't hate Toriel!  
> 3) I refuse to believe that Asgore would just straight up murder 6 kids (he was a father of 2 ffs) for no reason, so I'm tweaking the shit out of that.

              “mama!” Hiro hopped down from one of the lights and landed on my shoulder. When he first started doing this, I would jump and splash food everywhere. It took a lot of practice at home for me to get used to him using me as a beloved ladder, “guess what?”

              “What?” I didn’t my stride as I kept on cooking. We weren’t particularly busy at that point in time, but we did have a couple of families with young children with them. Screaming, hungry, bored children were a nightmare for my waiters. Thus, most families- often without their knowledge- were typically seen as VIPs to keep their little ones from kicking up a fuss because they were hungry.

              “king asgore is in the front!” Hiro declared while adjusting the bandana he wore on his head in the kitchen.

              “WHAT?” Papyrus looked over at Hiro and I, “THE KING IS HERE?”

              “He’s probably checking on Willoughby.” Harley, who was having to fill in for one of my workers, carefully balanced a variety of spices, blades, and meats with his orange magic, “Or he could be dropping him off.”

              “….” Snooze gave Harley a flat look after tossing down a spice Harley had called for early, “queen and king don’t like king and queen.”

              “Why would he come to the front though?” I frowned.

              A couple of minutes later- right as we were pushing out the food for the few families- a ticket from Asgore’s table came in. He wasn’t eating alone. My curiosity got the better of me, and I peered out into the front while Rosie began working on the appetizers his table had ordered. Queen Toriel sat as far from him as possible- on the other side of the table- with Willoughby in tow. Vipiria accidentally bumped into me while trying to get out with their drinks.

              “Olivia.” Asgore noticed my stumbling, “Hello.”

              _I can’t just run back into the kitchens now. Papyrus, please for the love of god, run the kitchen. Those families look satisfied at least. Jeez, we really are ending our lunch service soon aren’t we? I guess we’re more popular for dinner anyways, but I might need to think about investing in more advertisement._ I shook the plans of money out of my head and talked over to the table.

              “oLiViA?” Willoughby looked up at me. One of his frail- thankfully thickening- hands reached up to find me, “sHoUlDn’T yOu Be In ThE kItChEn?”

              “I just heard from Hiro that we had a VIP in the front of the house.” I winked at Asgore, “So I figured I’d come by and say hello. I didn’t expect to see you here Queen Toriel.” I bowed my head politely at her. She and Sissy were good friends, but the calm, wise goatwoman still made me more than a little….anxious for some reason. Well, it wasn’t ‘some’ reason. It was jealousy. The serene woman peacefully walked through life with the kind of confidence I sought for in myself to little reward. Just being around her made my hands tremble slightly, “Did you and Willoughby end your session early today?”

              “We did.” Queen Toriel smiled at me, “He’s doing well Miss Olivia.” Asgore’s eyes widened, and his gaze flickered to meet mine for a couple of seconds, “I decided to maybe trying bringing music into the equation. He’s very talented at spotting different pitches and keys.”

              “Really?” I smiled down at Willoughby and gently rubbed the top of his head, “Maybe we should buy you a mini piano, so you can create your own music.” I gave Queen Toriel a questioning look. She nodded encouragingly, “Would that be nice?”

              “yEs.” Willoughby said after a couple of seconds of deep thought.

              “I believe that Miss Josephine will more than likely know someone.” Asgore interjected politely, “If not, there are a couple of skilled monsters I could refer you to.”

              “I think I might contact my cousin Dante actually.” I smiled at the idea of speaking with my quarter French, ¾ Italian cousin. We chatted sporadically online because of the different time zones because- unlike Sissy- I needed my sleep, “I think it’d have to be electrical, so I’ll probably ask Sissy if she can do something with it as well.” Sissy wasn’t _just_ an artist after all.

              “rEaLlY?” Willoughby’s hands folded together somewhat in an absentminded, near prayer like motion.

              “Really. It may take a while though.” I picked him up and kiss his cheek, “So it might be a Christmas present. There’s bound to be some app we could let you use in the meantime.”

              “Chef.” Vipira whispered to me, “Papyrus is having a bit of an issue in the back. He’s requesting your “brave aid” before everything just…” Vipiria shook her head.

              “I’ll be right back there. Is your session with Willoughby done for the day?” I questioned Queen Toriel.

              “Yes. I’ll see you Friday.” Queen Toriel patted one of his hands, “You’d probably better go rescue Papyrus.”

              “Yeah.” I laughed and looked at Asgore, “And probably make a pie too.”

              Then there was a crash from the kitchens.

              _Oh dear._

              The kitchen was a bit of a mini-disaster. Papyrus wasn’t at fault though. One of my line cooks almost fed a child with a seafood allergy popcorn shrimp despite being warned by Vipiria about the mother’s adamant request that fish not appear on her son’s plate, so she got a very….not-happy-Olivia….scolding that may or may not have reduced her to tears…..

              What? I took my job very seriously.

              If I caught anyone spitting in food (which only happened the first few weeks of service with my old staff), I booted them immediately. If someone gave a person who requested diet soda regular soda, I booted them immediately. If someone didn’t tell me or the other chefs about an allergy they were informed of by the customers, I booted them _immediately_. If I thought I had a deadweight that wasn’t doing as much as they could, I booted them immediately. The gist of this all culminated to my staff knowing the Dos and Don’ts of working with me, and they understood why I took some of these things very seriously.

              For one, I was working on running an efficient, clean, honest kitchen. I refused to be one of those young chefs who just let anyone strut about the kitchen like they owned it without actually doing the work. Second, Granny was diabetic, _both_ of my sisters were allergic to nuts, and Nadia had been on a gluten free diet since she was 16. The one time Sissy had a nut- the only other time she had had a nut in _any_ form since she was 3- she almost _died_. My dear family members had health issues that could be jeopardized by incompetent waiters and cooks, so I understood the pain of families that had to be hypervigilant when it came to what their relatives ate. Ilya and the rest of my _competent_ staff kept their ears open and _only_ gave the customers what they wanted.

              “Listen,” I rested my hands on the girl’s shoulders, “I’m not firing you because you’re new, but please pay attention when Vipiria warns you about allergies. That child could’ve ended up in the hospital today if his mother hadn’t been looking out for him.”

              The girl gave me a quiet, sad answer before taking a quick break to get herself back together. She joined the rest of us in the kitchen after Papyrus went out and gave her a bit of a pep talk. Most of our staff seemed delighted at the dynamic between the two of us. I was the hardass who kept the kitchen going, and Papyrus was the one they could complain to if they felt I was being too harsh- which was rare. Patience- ever since childhood- had been one of the only real virtues I had. Putting up with Sissy and Nadia clashing heads 24/7 made it a necessary trait for me to cultivate at a young age.

              “how did it go today?” Hiro asked Willoughby, who as sitting in the kitchens for once.

              “wE tAlKeD aBoUt SoMe NoT nIcE tHiNgS.” Willoughby furrowed her brow. Like Harley, he seemed hesitant to dump any kind of stress onto my baby blue or Snooze if he could avoid it, “sTiLl, HeR mAjEsTy SaYs We’Re MaKiNg PrOgReSs.”

              “yay.” Hiro hugged him, “that’s wonderful willoughby!”

              “good.” Snooze, who I would swear up and down had the quietest teleportation powers I’d ever seen, appeared behind Willoughby and pulled him into a warm, cuddly hug, “are your bobos feeling better?”

              “MoStLy.” Willoughby’s hand drifted to the brace on his leg, “I..dOn’T tHiNk I’lL bE aBlE tO wAlK pRoPeRlY aGaIn.”

              “That’s alright.” Harley sat down a few paces away from them. He’d been relieved on his duties by my other back up showing up, “Snuggle has a limp, but he gets around.”

              “WELL,” Papyrus was cleaning up some of the dirtier stations now that we had some down time before the next big surge of customers was set to come. Obviously, we kept everything ready in case we had a surprise ahead of time, but everyone mostly focused on getting things ready for dinner, “SNUGGLE DOES HAVE FLOWEY TO HELP HIM OUT.”

              “True, but he’s got the others.” I winked at Snooze and Hiro, “I’m sure they’d be happy to help.”

              “of course! a hero must always come forward to protect those who need it most!” Hiro threw his fist up into the air with a happy smile. He held Willoughby close, “you can always count on me!”

              “tHanK yOu HiRo.” Willoughby kindly patted his head. He flinched upon hear Harley get up and walk a little closer. The bones in his right hand creaked as he clenched his fist.

              “Snooze conked out on you.” Harley said comfortingly. As swift as ever, my Lil’ Bro picked Snooze up and cradled him in his arms, “It’s naptime for him anyways.”

              Willoughby didn’t relax until Harley had left the kitchen.

 _Of course it won’t be that easy._ I sighed. Harley had remained ever supportive of the new member of the household, but I felt more and more like he was getting the short end of the stick. _I need to take him out to get something as a thank-you for his patience._

              “LIVI,” Papyrus snapped his fingers to get my attention. Loud noises typically got me to focus faster than my name.

              “Yes?” I looked at him.

              “VIPIRIA IS A BIT CONCERNED ABOUT WHAT’S GOING ON IN THE FRONT OF THE HOUSE.” Papyrus grinded the backs of his teeth together nervously. It seemed to be a habit that both of the skeleton brother’s had, “COULD YOU MAYBE GO SEE WHAT IT’S ABOUT?”

              “Sure.” I looked at the bitties and whispered, “Keep an eye on Willoughby.” Papyrus nodded.

              There was an argument going on out in the front of the house- albeit a quiet one. Queen Toriel’s eyes tried their best to gouge holes in Asgore’s larger frame. The King just sat across from her wary eyed and somewhat broken hearted. _Let’s just hope I don’t make this worse._

              “Is everything alright you two?” I asked quietly. The families from earlier- after getting the one allergic boy’s food to go- had left. Thus, Asgore and Queen Toriel were our only customers at the moment, “Some of my staff voiced some concern…”

              “Everything is fine.” Asgore’s fragile voice made me want to tug him into the back and boot the queen out of my restaurant.

              _“Always make sure to get both sides of the story.”_ Sissy’s voice warned me in the back of my head. A person rarely knows all of the nuance within an argument, so I took a steadying breath and looked at Queen Toriel.

              “Your Highness?” I questioned.

              “I no longer hold that title.” The quick snap was followed by a guilty look flashing across the queen’s face, “I’m sorry Miss Olivia. That was quite rude of me.”

              “It’s alright.” How I managed to force some pep into my voice was beyond me, “I take it you two haven’t been having a good time?”

              Asgore went to speak, but Miss Toriel beat him to the punch.

              “It’s hard to have a good time when listening to your ex-husband explain how he got away with six murders.”

              _Murders? Asgore could look intimidating without meaning to, but….murder?_ My mind couldn’t comprehend that idea. The King was by far one of the most polite, caring individuals I’d met. True, he’d been quick to leap into action when provoked, but I’d never seen any signs of him being…like….Ted Bundy or someone in that vein.

              “Asgore?” I tried my best to convey with my eyes that I wasn’t jumping to conclusions. The King of the Underground sighed and rested his face in one of his paws before speaking.

              “She’s referring to an experiment that she truly knows little about.” Miss Toriel bristled at that, “I don’t think this is the best place to really discuss it Olivia. Could you and I have this conversation somewhere more private?”

              “So you can fill my close friend’s baby sister’s head with lies?” Miss Toriel’s voice made him flinch.

              “Enough.” I held up my hands between the two of them, “Please stop fighting. You know this is only going to upset your subjects.”

              That made them both fall silent. It took a couple of seconds, but eventually Miss Toriel paid her portion of the tab and left me with Asgore alone. The King’s shoulder’s fell, and one fist curled in on itself. I was close enough to see a variety of thin scars on his neck and ears, chips in his horns, and small patches of pink flesh where hair couldn’t grow.

              “Asgore?” I rested a hand on his back, “Why don’t you come into the back and sit in my office for a little bit? It might help.”

              The monster members of my staff all bowed and beamed at their king as he walked through the kitchen. Papyrus even gave him a half-hug that didn’t become a full one only because of the food he was making with his other hand.

              “I’m sorry about that display.” King Asgore reluctantly sat in my office chair after a bit of coaxing, “I just wanted to discuss the last few bits of our divorce proceedings….I didn’t realize she had heard about my other court case.”

              “The one about the-“ I paused and glared at my open door. I leaned out and whispered to Rosie to tell Papyrus he was in charge before shutting the door with my typical ‘eavesdrop and your fired’ sign taped to the front, “-murders?”

              “Yes.” Asgore sighed, “I will not lie.” He stared at his hands for the longest time, “My hands are not clean of human blood. How could they be? The Human-Monster Bloodlight wars were long before my time as king, but….Humans kept finding their way into the Underground.”

              “Those missing children cases?” I questioned.

              “Yes, though most of those sins fall on my father’s shoulders.” Asgore leaned forward and asked, “How much do you know about the war?”

              “The Bloodlight Wars ended after human witches scarified 7 pure SOULs and the SOUL of the queen at that time.” I paused, “That was your mother…?”

              “No.” Asgore shook his head, “She was my father’s first wife. I wouldn’t be born until after 150 years had passed in the Underground.”

              _He’s…over 600 years old._ I tried my best to hide my shock. _He looks…good for someone in his 600s._

              “Monsters do not age like humans.” Asgore clarified, “We age as we have children, and even then it is a slow process.”

              “I see.” I nodded. Humans were known to have much shorter lifespans than monsters to begin with.

              “My father died 300 years after the barrier was erected. He succumbed to madness brought on by the weight of the crown and the constant human attacks on the Ruins.” Asgore took the heavy golden piece off of his head and stared at it, “The burden fell to me and my young court. W.D Gaster- a close friend of my and the son of the then recently deceased Royal Scientist-  had discovered a potential way out of the Underground. The barrier was created by fusing 8 SOULs. Why could it not be broken with them? Thus, a new plan was thought up, but human hostilities had dwindled.”

              I had a bad feeling in my gut.

              “Over the next 100 years, Gaster would begin to focus on other projects and fall in love with one of the few remaining skeletons Verdana. I would propose to Toriel and start a family with her. We were still adjusting, so tensions were still high. We waited and waited and waited for a human to fall….One did. A young girl who ran away from an abusive home. Toriel found her among the buttercups. I…couldn’t. I couldn’t do what was needed for the plan to work. Instead, Toriel and I raised the girl- Chara- as our own. My people seemed to adjust to the idea of creating a new home beneath the surface. Then…” Asgore trailed off.

              “A monster broke free of the Underground carrying a child’s corpse.” I filled in the blanks. Every child heard that horror story growing up, “Your…children?”

              “Yes. Asriel- my son- and Chara concocted this plan.” Asgore laughed fondly despite it being obviously painful, “It didn’t work. After that, human hostility increased briefly. That was when Gaster discovered that we needed a different SOUL for each facet of humanity. We had Bravery and Justice harvested from the children who followed their parents to the Underground, but there were too many of them and not enough of what we actually needed.” At my disgusted look, he further explained, “Human children are filled with the purest forms of human determination- uncorrupted by life’s harshness. The children were _not_ harmed by my people…they were harmed by their own. Toriel still blames me for not being able to protect them. After hostilities died down, a sickly human child fell down- a Kind human who offered Gaster his dying SOUL on his death bed. Then….” Asgore shuddered.

              “Then?” I sat on my desk beside him. Some part of me wondered how long he had chewed on these memories alone.

              “The 4th, 5th, and 6th humans fell.” Asgore growled, “Despite the purity of their human SOULs, they were…vile. They murdered scores of my people without a care in the world- like only children can. Papyrus’s mother actually died at the hands of the 6th SOUL Perseverance. Patience masqueraded as a kind individual accompanied by her twin Integrity, but the two were lying by omission and poisoning our food supplies under orders from adult humans above. I executed them for their crimes.” Asgore glowered down at his hands, “They hurt so many of my people, my friends, but no one else is willing to recognize- no _remember_ that. I’m just a lowly murderer to them. Perhaps I am, but the jury decided to call me innocent in a private, under wraps trial. That was what angered her.”

              _Oh wow…._

              “Asgore?” I ran a hand across the top of his head, “Have you thought of maybe going to talk to a professional about this? I can tell it’s really eating you up inside, but…I really don’t think I’m skilled enough to actually help. If it’s any comfort, I understand.” It made me a bit uncomfortable to think about in all honesty, but one couldn’t really blame a person for defending the ones they were sworn to protect.

              “Just listening to me whine like a child is more than enough.” Asgore tried his best to smile, “I’m sorry. I sincerely doubt you intended to endure this today.”

              “I didn’t, but I like to be there for my friends.” I poked his nose, “You should probably look up an actual therapist though. Please?”

              “If you believe it will help.” Asgore relented, “Thank you for listening to me.”

              “What are friends for?” I shrugged.

              “I must pay you back for this.”

              “Ugh this again.” I sighed, crossing my arms in thought, “Alright, treat me to more of your tea then. That would be nice.” Asgore frowned at me, “Some relaxation time is more than enough to “pay me back” with Asgore. I do work crazy hours you know.”

              “Very well.” Asgore nodded.

              I was glad to see that he didn’t look _quite_ as rough as when he walked in. Sometimes telling dark things to just anyone will help a little bit. Asgore forgot to pay his portion of the bill however, so I just covered it for him.

              “IS EVERYTHING ALRIGHT?” Papyrus asked, looking more than a little adorable with Hiro and Harley sitting on his head.

              “Yes.” I nodded. Snooze appeared in his scarf, “Hey there little guy. How was your nap.”

              “you touched his nose.” Snooze gave me a flat look.

              I burned bright red. _Oh. Right. **Snooze was napping in my office**_.

              That was probably the most awkward conversation I’ve ever had to have with Papyrus- EVER.


	10. A Little Bit about the Brothers

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I own nothing (Except Tinsel and Atlantic). Full disclaimer/links can be found in Ch1
> 
> And we get more Jo and Sans because I love them and their siblings love them :3  
> Also, I meant to have this chapter up yesterday, but then I went to an eye exam and my pupils dilated.....yeah, staring at the bright white 'paper' in my word processor wasn't going to happen. Hell, just watching YouTube videos burned like motherfucker XD I'll try and get the other two chapters up today to make up for it.

              For the first year in a long time, September just flew by into early October.

              I honestly didn’t notice the days passing. Work and the bitties and Asgore kept me busy enough that Papyrus often had to remind me what day of the week it was. I even almost went to work on Sunday- a day we were closed because I wanted to allow the religious members of my staff go to wherever they needed to go- _twice_ thinking it was Saturday. Papyrus managed to contain some of his worry about me, but I felt terrible about adding to _his_ stress. He was worried about the restaurant, the bitties, and his king as well. Sissy and Sans seemed to be having a bit of a lover’s spat that worried Papyrus even more.

              “Papyrus.” I patted his back comfortingly, “They aren’t going to separate over something this petty…whatever it is.”

              The two’s cryptic arguments made little sense to Papyrus and I. Sans accusing her of looking at something with a ‘golden glow’ that seemed to really set him off. Sissy retorting- thoroughly insulted- that he must’ve had little faith in her if he thought she was like ‘the kid’. It was like listening to two aliens argue.

              “BUT WHAT IF THEY DO?” Papyrus twisted one of his gloves in his hand, “WHAT WOULD HAPPEN TO MY BROTHER? THIS IS THE FIRST TIME I’VE EVER REALLY SEEN HIM PUT EFFORT INTO _ANYTHING_ , AND…WOULD WE….WOULD _WE_ HAVE TO QUIT BEING FRIENDS?”

              “No!” I frowned, “We’re adults Papyrus. They can’t tell us who we can and can’t be friends with. Besides, Sans is the first person I’ve seen Sissy this crazy about! I don’t think they’ll break up over some stupid, little argument.”

              “REALLY?” Papyrus leaned against my shoulder a little and sighed.

              “Really.” I reached over and grabbed his hands, patting them comfortingly, “It’s normal for people to argue every now and then.” I noticed the slight twist to Papyrus’s face, “Papyrus?”

              “mimi. dede.” Snooze walked into the living room dragging two mugs with him. Hiro pushed the mugs from the other side of them, “harley sent these.”

              “Aww…” I stood up and picked the mugs up from off of the ground. Harley still worked away in the kitchen more than likely creating an early Sunday breakfast for the two of us, “Thanks Harley!”

              “No problem Mom.” He called back.

              “And thank you two for bringing them to me.” Difficulty arose in my attempts to squat down and kiss the tops of their heads, but I succeeded in the end, “Coffee Papyrus.” I handed him his bright red race car mug with practiced ease, “Listen, if it’ll make you feel better, why don’t we go swing by and check on them after breakfast?”

              “don’t we have a tea party with asgo-“ Snooze’s nickname had stuck apparently “- after lunch?”

              “ _After_ lunch Hiro.” I giggled as he climbed up my back, using my pajamas as a rock wall, “We’ve got time.”

              “IF YOU…WOULDN’T MIND?” Papyrus looked up at me hopefully, “I’M JUST WORRIED.”

              “It’s normal.” I shrugged the shoulder that Hiro wasn’t clinging to. Reaching over, I patted the top of Papyrus’s head, “A lot of people often forget that younger siblings do like to look out for their older ones.”

              “breakfast. other house.” Snooze counted down the to-do list of the day out of habit. For some reason, he seemed to prefer having some form of schedule. The little guy was practically a day planner that could talk, “lunch. tea. loulou appointment.”

              “Speaking of our resident poppy.” Harley came into the room balancing a tray of French toast, sliced fruit, and cereal with his magic, “Snooze, could you go wake Willoughby up? I’d do it, but my femur is still recovering.” Willoughby had accidentally punched three deep rents into the side of Harley’s femur without meaning to. Again, Harley didn’t hold it against him, but it did make him more than a little hesitant to wake the poppy up again.

              “m’kay.” Snooze trotted off to go rouse the sleeping bitty. The tea that Sissy’s bitties had kept us supplied with helped him sleep through the night a little _too_ much sometimes- especially when we accidentally put too much in it.

              “So we’re going to go check on Auntie?” Harley began to chew on a mandarin orange slice.

              “YES. I’M WORRIED ABOUT THE ARGUMENT SHE AND MY BROTHER HAVE BEEN HAVING FOR DAYS NOW.” Papyrus- driven by the idea of going to help his brother- ate much more quickly than he usually did, “EVEN FLOWEY HAS STARTED TO GET INVOLVED IN IT.”

              “flowey.” Hiro made a face while eating some French toast, “I don’t like him.”

              “I don’t think a lot of people _like_ him.” I agreed. The flower monster- for the most part- had been very rude and grumpy every time I had met him. Sissy and Snuggle seemed to be the only ones really willing to tolerate him, and Greyson just found him fascinating, “At least he’s helping look after Grey.”

              “gReY?” Willoughby crackling yawn didn’t make me jump as much as it used to. Snooze led him to the living room, “hMmM?”

              “My nephew.” I bent down and picked Willoughby and Snooze up with one hand. Harley moved to sit on the far edge of the coffee table, and Hiro tumbled down onto my lap to give Willoughby a hug.

              “Oh...ThE bAbY?”

              “yes!” Hiro answered for me while handing him some of the fruits, “you didn’t get to see him last time because he was asleep.”

              “good baby.” Snooze had only meet Greyson twice or so, but he seemed fond of the almost eerily quiet babe, “not too loud.”

              “wHy ArE wE vIsItInG?” Willoughby situated his leg to rest more comfortably on my knee.

              “MY BROTHER AND OLIVIA’S SISTER HAVE BEEN HAVING A COUPLE OF ARGUMENTS…. I’M WORRIED.” Papyrus admitted, “SO WE’RE GOING TO CHECK ON THEM! AFTER ALL, NOT HELPING YOUR SIBLINGS OUT IS THE DEFINITION OF UNCOOL!”

              “Will they even be in?” Harley’s voice didn’t make Willoughby flinch anymore at least.

              “They should be.” I nodded, “Sissy always works from home to look after Grey, and Sans took the day off from work.”

              “they don’t mind us just crashing in.” Hiro grinned, “remember?”

              “They might if they’ve been fighting the past few days.” Harley finished eating what he wanted from the tray and brushed his hands clean on his pants, “I just don’t want our arrival to make things worse.”

              _He has a valid point. Who wants their younger siblings to see them arguing with their near-spouse?_ I frowned and thought about it. _Papyrus is just going to worry anyways….Would it be better to just wait?_

              “PERHAPS WE COULD HELP THEM WORK THROUGH THE ARGUMENT IF IT’S STILL ONGOING?” Papyrus’s sweet optimism made me worry just a little less.

              “Well, we won’t know until we go see what the battle field looks like.” I chuckled, “So let’s get a move on everybody!”

              As it turned out, Sissy and Sans had finally begun to quit ‘arguing’. The bitties described it more as slightly more vicious bickering rather than a full blown fight. None of Sissy’s bitties seemed particularly concerned about it, and simply told us that Sissy and Sans did argue like all couples did. This particular argument was just- none of them seemed to know how to describe it without being to specific- personal for them.

              “pap.” Sans rubbed a circle in his brother’s back, “we’re not going to fall apart because of a bit of bickering. c’mon, you know that newmore’s got thicker skin than that. i mean, _i_ don’t, but it just goes right through me.”

              “DO NOT MAKE ME REGRET WORRYING ABOUT YOU BROTHER.” Papyrus growled. Sans just winked at him.

              “Jeez.” Sissy shook her head from where she was playing with Greyson on the floor. The small child’s eyes followed the toy with the kind of intense focus bosses wished their workers would have, “Did we really worry you guys that much?”

              “well…” Blake hopped onto her back and laughed, “you two can get pretty mean when you argue.”

              “Quite rude as well.” Cyan agreed.

              “we don’t.” Sans looked to Waltzer and Idjit to back him up. The two bitties shared a look and didn’t’ say a word, “do we?”

              “Possible.” Sissy shrugged, “We both don’t have much of a filter when it comes to each other anymore.”

              “huh.” Sans seemed fascinated by this new discovery. Then a small, flirty smile crawled across his face, “guess this means i need to start being extra nice to you.”

              “Careful bone baby. I’m not the one who usually has problems walking straight _after_.” Sissy stuck her tongue out at him.

              “OHMYGODWHY!?” Papyrus covered his ears.

              “I….never wanted to know that much about your sex life- _ever_.” I felt slightly nauseous.

              “what are they complaining about?” Hiro looked to Harley for guidance. Harley was too busy blushing to be of much help, “snooze?”

              “sex. they’re talking-“ Harley’s hand clamped over Snooze’s mouth before he could continue.

              “what’s sex?” Hiro cocked his head.

              All of Sissy’s bitties stared at Hiro for a couple of seconds with blank “he is too pure for this house” looks. Sans was howling with laughter, and Sissy seemed content to just smirk. _I want to kill you so bad you horny 31 year old._

              “hM…” Willoughby had gravitated towards Sissy and Greyson early on. One of his hands reached out to touch the baby’s forehead. He blinked and felt around Greyson’s face gently, “hUmAn BaBiEs ArE sO bIg….”

              “Humans are bigger than bitties.” Sissy reminded him, “We’re a lot softer though.”

              “YeS.” Willoughby’s hand squeezed the back of Sissy’s arm, “vErY…sQuIsHy.”

              As much as I envied Sissy’s natural ease with Willoughby, I found myself more than a little happy that he looked like he was enjoying this. Sissy’s bitties never brought up his past that they _had_ to have learned about from Raze, and they didn’t react jealously upon seeing the special attention Sissy seemed to be giving him.

              _I guess this is what happens when you build a family on broken pasts._

              “Hmmm….” Flowey’s flat look hadn’t left Willoughby the entire visit. Finally one of his vines tapped the side of Willoughby’s head. The poppy startled a little and looked around, “….Can you not even sense magic?”

              “hUh?” Willoughby finally zoned in on Flowey’s location with his empty eyes.

              “Can. You. Not. Sense. Magic.” Flowey rolled his eyes, “A lot of monsters don’t care about sight because there are other ways to get around. The internal monster magic sensor usually makes up for that.”

              “he can’t ya jackass.” Raze teleported behind Flowey and locked the flower monster in a tight headlock, “prize bitties are exposed to a lot of chemicals that kill that internal sensor.”

              Willoughby cringed at the reminder of his past. Again, that darkness that seemed to constantly drag him down surged up and made his shoulders wilt. Sunshine quickly wrapped a calming arm around his waist.

              “It’s alright Willoughby.” He promised, “Flowey doesn’t know much about the fighting rings, and he’s a bit of an asshole.” A dangerous, deep gold flare flickered through Sunshine’s flames as he glared at Flowey. Some part of me recognized that there was going to be a _long_ conversation with the little monster after Papyrus and I cleared out- which we did after Willoughby calmed down.

              “You sure you don’t want to have lunch with us?” Tinsel pouted up at me. Atlantic stood behind him, reminding me a lot of the ever quiet December who stuck to Idjit like glue.

              “we don’t mind.” Sans added.

              “NO.” Papyrus shook his head.

              “We’d hate to impose.” I agreed, “You and Sissy still need to iron out some of the kinks left from your ‘bickering’ right?”

              “eh…little bit.” Sans’s pupils flickered in and out. Sissy often teased that was a sign that he was about to get very grumpy with her. The white orbs briefly flashed into small hearts, “but we’ll be fine. we’re allowed to argue you know.”

              “As long as things don’t get physical.” Harley threatened. Even though he adored Papyrus, he was still first and foremost _my_ bitty.

              “it won’t.” Waltzer chuckled, “they usually just bicker from different rooms.”

              “please try to not fight today.” Hiro pleaded.

              “alright.” Sans nodded.

              “Oh wait!” Sissy hurried down the stairs from her attic office to yell out at me, “Love you!”

              “I love you too Sissy!” I laughed and waved at her before she hurried back upstairs with Blake, Snuggle, and a very paranoid Flowey trailing behind her.

              “i LiKe hEr.” Willoughby quietly mused after we began to walk home.

              “A lot of bitties seem to.” I agreed, “Except for Cesar, but I think he only likes Nadia to begin with.”

              “cEaSaR?” Willoughby’s brows furrowed.

              “The oldest Newmore sister Nadia’s boss.” Harley explained from where he sat Papyrus’s head, “He’s not your typical boss, but he still isn’t too fond of people that aren’t well…Nadia.”

              “Oh.” Willoughby, “He’S nOt…A…?”

              “he’s not from a ring.” Hiro shook his head, “he did have some bad owners though. i feel really sorry for him.”

              “doesn’t like snuggle.” Snooze added.

              “OH YES.” Papyrus frowned, “I THOUGHT BOSSES TENDED TO LIKE MEEKS.”

              “Well,” I dragged out the word, “Snuggle _is_ already surrounded by a ton of other bitties and has a ‘brother’ in Blake.”

              “TRUE.”

              When we got back home, we just did our usual Sunday routine of cleaning up the house. Snooze had never been particularly fond of the weekly chores, but Hiro seemed to love them. The only bitty that sat still during it all was Willoughby because he could get hurt trying to navigate while we were trying to move things around to clean.

              Papyrus and I were cleaning up the mostly pristine kitchen together when my curiosity got the better of me.

              “Why were you so worried about Sans and Sissy fighting?” I asked under my breath to keep the bitties from being able to eavesdrop as easily.

              “IT REMINDED ME….OF HOME.” Papyrus scowled down at the stove top. He was glaring at his own slightly distorted reflection, “SANS AND OUR FATHER REALLY STARTED TO…WELL….GO AT IT AFTER MOTHER DIED. THEY’D ARGUE AND ARGUE AND ARGUE….” Papyrus shook his head and sighed, “EVENTUALLY, SANS MOVED ME OUT OF THE HOUSE WITH HIM IN SNOWDIN, BUT I WOULD FLINCH FOR THE LONGST TIME ANY TIME HE RAISED HIS VOICE. IT’S WHY HE SPEAKS LIKE HE’S LOWERCASE WHEN HE’S REALLY UPPERCASE LIKE FATHER AND I.”

              “Case?” I questioned.

              “IT’S THE WAY OTHER MONSTERS HEAR US BECAUSE OF OUR MAGIC. HUMANS CAN’T TELL THE DIFFERENCE.” Papyrus clarified, “MY BROTHER ACTUALLY SPEAKS IN UPPERCASE SANS SERIF, BUT HE KEEPS SPEAKING IN LOWERCASE COMIC SANS TO COMFORT ME.”

              “Oh, I think Sissy mentioned that. Wasn’t he named Comic Sans from birth though?” I would definitely be telling Sissy about this.

              “WE’RE NAMED BASED OFF OF WHAT OUR PARENTS THINK WE WILL SOUND LIKE WHEN WE’RE OLDER. AS BABY BONES, WE CAN’T SPEAK AT ALL, BUT OUR MAGIC TENDS TO HAVE A TYPE OF VIBRATION TO IT THAT HELPS THEM GAUGE IT.” Papyrus explained, “MY BROTHER WAS TOO CLOSE TO THE MIDDLE LINE FOR THEM TO BE SURE. MOTHER NAMED HIM COMIC SANS HOPING FOR A MORE PEACEFUL, CALM FIRST SON.”

              “But he’s actually an uppercase. Huh.” I scratched the back of my head, “Well…that’s weird, but I guess it’s not the oddest thing I’ve ever heard.”

              “NYEH HEH HEH.” A surprisingly wicked gleam appeared in Papyrus’s eye, “I DON’T THINK YOU’VE EVER HEARD A SKELETON MONSTER SPEAK CASE BEFORE!”

              “No.” I agreed, “Sissy’s mentioned that Sans slips into it sometimes when he’s angry. Apparently, it just sounds like a bad phone connection sound was thrown into audacity and messed around with by a 10 year old.”

              “REALLY?” Papyrus began to speak in the buzzing, clicking noises that Sissy had described to me. I could tell there was some kind of pattern to it, but what he could possibly be saying was out of reach, “WHAT DID THAT SOUND LIKE?”

              “Like a bad phone connection sound thrown into an outdated audacity that was messed around by a 7 year old who thinks crinkling noises make things sound creepier.” I answered playfully despite the small shiver running down my spine. The alien noises coming from my dear friend just reminded me of exactly how different he was from me, “Still, you’re too adorable for me to really see it as a bad thing.”

              “HEH!” Papyrus grinned and clonked the side of his head against mine.

              “mama!” Hiro skidded into the kitchen, “should we start getting lunch ready? we might be late for our tea time with asgo!”

              “Ah crud!” I definitely needed to fix my hair and paint my face on if I was going anywhere near the king, “We do. We do.”

              I hated leaving Papyrus alone, but he promised to go spend some time with Undyne while I was away. Harley opted to go with him for Willoughby’s sake.

              “ARE YOU SURE I SHOULDN’T WALK YOU TO HIS HOUSE?” Papyrus reached up to make sure that Snooze was tucked in just the right way in the fancy, light scarf I wore, “THINGS…HAVEN’T BEEN GOOD MONSTERS LATELY.”

              “I’ll be fine.” I patted his cheek, “Besides, I’m going to Asgore’s house. I’m pretty sure I can rely on him.”

              “If it gets dark, have him walk you home.” Harley ordered.

              “Sir yes sir.” I teased, kissing his cheek, “We’re off!”


	11. Conversations Can Be Awkward, Painful, Embarrassing, or All of the Above.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I own nothing. Full disclaimer/links can be found in Ch1
> 
> I just want to go ahead and say this: Jo's SOUL is purple (perseverance). Nadia's is orange (bravery). Shin's is yellow (justice). Olivia's is cyan (patience). Within the lore I've presented, these colors are just the "main" ones you'll find within them. As Patchwork demonstrated, humans are made up varying degrees of these qualities, so there's more to them than just that, but these would be what you could call their "main" SOUL colors.

              “Olivia.” Asgore greeted me warmly, “Hiro, Willoughby, Snooze.”

              “hey asgo!” Hiro waved at him. Asgore blinked and frowned slightly before remembering the terrible nickname that Snooze came up for him, “harley didn’t come today, but the rest of us are here.”

              “I see.” Asgore stepped aside to let me inside his home, “Is he preoccupied with something or sick?”

              “He still makes Willoughby a little tense.” I explained. The poppy in question made a soft noise of apology, “Harley wants to make sure that Willoughby doesn’t try to rush his recovery, so he’s giving him space.”

              “Ah.” Asgore locked the door before escorting me to the kitchen. Some tea was already beginning to boil. Leftover slices of a pie I had dropped off a day or so before were on the table, “I hope you don’t mind eating some of your own food.”

              “Actually, Papyrus made that one. It’s made with echoflower petals.” I bit my lip to hide my grin at the look of near horror that flickered across his face, “He tested it about thirty times before we ever began to serve it, and we rarely ever give anyone a whole pie of it.”

              “I would hope you didn’t.” Asgore looked at the white, creamy pie like it had betrayed him somewhat, “Echoflowers are very dangerous, but I shouldn’t be surprised that Verdana taught Papyrus the recipe. She was always messing around with dangerous ingredients.”

              “did she ever poison you?” Snooze stretched his arms and legs out the instant I sat him down on the table. Hiro hopped down while I carefully placed Willoughby down beside them.

              “No.” Asgore chuckled, “Gaster ended up being her Guinea pig most of the time. Poor man. He loved her though.”

              “Is that….why he was so affected by what happened?”  I shot a look at the bitties and Asgore immediately understood that I didn’t want them to be burdened by this.

              “It was.” Asgore nodded, “He became more of a recluse.” Sitting two large mugs of tea down followed by three smaller, bitty sized mugs, Asgore took a seat himself and began to serve the pie, “I had to order him to show up for his own birthday party. It was little wonder that Sans and Papyrus chose to move out of his home. It did place quite the burden on Sans however. He worked many jobs to support himself and his brother.”

              “wow.” Hiro looked up at Asgore from over his mug, “so sans wasn’t always a bag of lazy bones?” Asgore shook his head with a small smile, “that’s good to know!”

              “He’s surprisingly nonchalant.” I thought to all the times I had ever really seen Sans. The typical, lazy, easy going air that aggravated Papyrus so much rarely ever gave way to anything too outside of that idea of him. Sissy did often tell me that her boyfriend was notorious for his deep, ‘scary’ eyes that frightened most people. She just fond them adorable- because of course she did, “Did that change when Papyrus began to train to become a member of the Royal Guard?”

              “Not really. Papyrus…is….well….Papyrus. Neither Undyne nor myself could really bring ourselves to actually teach him beyond what he would need to know for survival, and we were reluctant to do even that. Both of us feared him losing that hope upon learning the actual truth behind combat.” Asgore scratched the side of his nose nervously, “Sans was also deeply set against his brother learning too much about fighting as well, and he was Papyrus’s only family left in the world. Thus, his opinion on the matter weighed heavily on us.”

              “tHeRe ArEn’T oThEr SkElEtOn MoNsTeRs?” Willoughby’s quiet voice almost wasn’t loud enough to be heard.

              “No. When…the twins- the ones I mentioned to you Olivia- came to the Underground they specifically targeted the skeleton front line fighters and….well….Their numbers dwindled. There are probably a few pieces of bone- skeleton can reproduce asexually or sexually- Gaster intended to use to bring old clans back from the dead in a way, but he became more obsessed than ever in researching determination and magic. The idea died in his mind relatively quickly.”

              “Could Dr. Alphys maybe work with them?” I took another bite of pie, “I mean, it’s sad that there are only two skeleton monsters currently working around.”

              “If we could find the bones, perhaps. Sans is the only one who knows where they are however, and he doesn’t even like to speak about his father’s hot land laboratory if he can avoid it.” Asgore sighed, “I wonder if your sister could change his mind.”

              “my amazing aunt probably could do it.” Hiro said after a couple of moments of deep thought, “buut….not now. she and sans aren’t really happy with each other right now.”

              “Trouble in paradise?” Asgore looked directly at me, as though gauging how I was feeling about the whole thing.

              “They’ve just been having arguments about something. The two are fine.” I insisted, “Sissy and Sans both stressed to Papyrus, the bitties, and I that a couple of arguments here and there aren’t going to break them up. Their relationship isn’t made of tissue paper after all.”

              “That is a relief.” Asgore’s shoulder’s relaxed slightly. His eyes unfocused some. I found myself wondering where his mind had wandered off to when he added, “I don’t know how Gaster would’ve reacted to his son being involved with a human- especially after Dana’s death.”

              “WoUlD hE nOt ApPrOvE?” Willoughby had situated himself a little bit closer to me after finishing the tiny portion of the pie he thought his stomach could handle.

              “Hmmmm….” The rumbling noise that came from his chest reminded me of just how _large_ the king was. He could probably crush me under one hand if he really wanted to, “I suppose he might be happy that his son is happy.”

              “that’s all you can ask for sometimes.” Snooze wisely observed.

              “True.” Asgore smiled down at him and patted his head. Snooze preened a little under the gentle affection, “However, I find myself growing sick of how depressing most of our conversations are. How about we discuss things that aren’t as….”

              “Heavy?” I provided.

              “Yes.” Asgore nodded in agreement.

              “Well, you could always help us try and pin down a baby name.” I pointed towards Willoughby, “We’ll be having 5 bitties instead of 4 sometime in November.”

              “IdEaS wOuLd Be NiCe.” Willoughby leaned forward towards where he had heard Asgore sit down, “pApYrUs StIlL wAnTs To NaMe HiM pApyRuS tHe IiI.”

              “ugh…dede can’t name things well.” Snooze made a rather disgusted looking face.

              “neither can our amazing aunt. she’s the one who named december december after all.” Hiro laughed.

              “Names for the babe…” Asgore seemed to blush slightly, “I am sad to say that….I am not the best at naming things either.”

              “You can’t be that bad. You’re a king.” I argued.

              “I named the castle I built “New Home” because the first castle my father built was “Home”….” Asgore elaborated.

              _Wow._

              “Okay, so you are that bad.” I patted the back of his paw, “Doesn’t detract from your overall likeability though- promise. If you decide to settle down again, just let your new wife name things okay?”

              “You make it sound like I’ll find someone new to spend the rest of my life with easily.” Asgore’s laugh was a little to self-depreciative for my tastes.

              “Because you will. I don’t just mean the bitches who want you because of your status.” I quickly covered that base to limit potential rebuttals, “You’re a kind, charming man who more than likely will find someone interested in whatever you find yourself interested in with little to no sweat off your back. It’s rare to find a gentleman nowadays. I’m surprised you don’t already have tens of single ladies flocking to you already.”

              “Ah…do the human women who like to cut at my ceremonial armors straps count? If so…” Asgore shuddered, “I think I’d prefer to- as some humans say- fly under the radar.”

              “what!?” Hiro’s eyes widened, “people have attacked your armor?”

              “They’ve also cut off bits of my cloak and fur to keep….” Asgore lips curled with distaste. He appeared to try and wash some kind of bad taste out of his mouth with his tea.

              “You have fangirls.” I sighed, “Of course you have fangirls. You fit the ideal most young girls have of men. Tall, strong, attractive, kind.  I’m sorry that they seem to be more than a little insane though.”

              Asgore was silent.

              “asgo?” Snooze tapped his hand, “asssgooo.”

              “H-Huh?” Was that a slight blush I spied on his cheeks? I thought it was, “Sorry. I just found myself lost in thought for a couple of seconds.”

              “Asgore….” I leaned closer and rested my chin on my palm after setting my elbow down on the table, “When was the last time someone called you attractive?”

              “To my face?” His voice cracked a tad, but I pretended to not notice, “A couple of decades.”

              “Ahhhhh….” I sat back in my chair, “Well, that explains it. Guess I just need to set you up a few accounts on some dating websites just to prove my point.”

              “dAtInG wEbSiTes?” Willoughby scratched the back of his neck.

              “It’s a place where humans go to find mates basically. Though most people want a single night only kind of mate.” I clucked my tongue in disappointment, “It can be a good way to meet people though. You shouldn’t let your divorce with Toriel keep you out of the dating game for life Asgore. You do deserve to be happy.”

              “everyone deserves to be happy!” Hiro agreed. He paused before adding, “well, except for villains. they deserve whatever misery they get because they are the treacherous fiends who prey on the weak!”

              “tRuE.” Willoughby’s hands traced the old scars hidden beneath his long sleeves out of habit.

              “How did we begin discussing this to begin with?” Asgore grumbled, “I don’t see you going out on many dates.” He pointed out.

              “That’s because I’ve been too busy for one night flings. Not to mention this last guy I was with almost didn’t tell me the long list of STDs he had. I don’t think I’ve ever run that fast in heels my entire life.” It was a really disappointing event to remember. The guy had actually been really nice, but my temple had to stay clean. I refused to live my life with an imaginary hazmat suit if I could avoid it. People could judge me all the wanted. My standards were my standards, and risk of an STD was just not a risk I was willing to take for some quick, dirty sex, “Working at a restaurant doesn’t give me too much wiggle room to work with you know.”

              “Is it too much?” The immediate concern that filled Asgore gaze made that little blossom of friendly affection I felt towards him bloom a little bit more at an off angle.

              “No. No. The hours are crazy, but I’m not about to fall apart. You should’ve seen me while I worked for Nadia. Now _that_ had been hell.” Just the memories of having to stay up until three in the morning to finish a long list of things the company had needed by nine in the morning that day caused me to recoil some, “Let me tell you, I _never_ will understand Nadia’s love for her job, but I’ve got to respect her for doing it. Someone has to after all.”

              “I heard about her success.” Asgore commented, letting Snooze curl up in one of his elbows to nap, “Some people said that she had over 100 job opportunities lined up the instant she broke free of the Newmore company.”

              “3,267.” I corrected him. Ignoring the biting anger at feeling the shadow of my Goliath of a sister hanging over _me_ , I continued, “She and Sissy have always been able to impress! You should see how many people want Sissy to design a website, a logo, a painting, a dress, and so on for them. The Newmore twins really are the rising stars of Grayridge.”

              “You didn’t include yourself in that analysis.” Asgore’s perceptiveness triggered a long line of cursing in my head. My jealousy must’ve flickered across my face, or my tone must’ve become icy. How else could he notice such a small detail?

              “I’m not quite in the same league as they are.” My laughter was thin enough to crack if a fly landed on it. My bitties- minus Snooze who was out cold after a long night of helping me finish some accounting- both scowled up at me, “What? They’re both practically superhuman. There’s only so much little old me can do in comparison.”

              “Have either of them started their own restaurant?” Asgore angled his head to the side some.

              “No, but-“

              “Have either of them been as vocal about monster inclusion? To the point that over half of their staff were monsters?”

              “No, but Nadia-“

              “Have either of them been able to rally people behind a donation effort with just a few quick words and a bright smile?”

              “That fund raiser for the Monster Child Teachings Foundation really wasn’t helped _that_ much by me.” I had participated in the fund raiser over the summer and offered more than a few free pies and free meal tickets to Chez Newmore as goal rewards.

              “Olivia.” Asgore sighed, “You’ve accomplished a great deal. Your sisters are very _proud_ of you. I think they’d me more than a little disappointed that you see them as these near god-like figures that deserved to be put on pedestals- especially if you aren’t even willing to put yourself up there with them.”

              “he’s right mama!” Hiro stood up and put his fists on his hips, “you are _very_ special!”

              “Hiro.” I chuckled, “You’re more than a little biased.” I looked up at Asgore, “Both of you are.”

              “I am biased yes.” Asgore agreed, “But I cannot tell you how many times the name Olivia Newmore has come up in conversations I have had or heard, and usually the name is followed by whatever good deed she had done that day. You don’t give yourself enough credit.”

              My cheeks had to be warm enough to cook on at that point. _When was the last time I ever received praise like this?_ It had been a while. A large paw covered one of my hands. Snooze woke up because his pillow moved, but he merely stared down at where Asgore’s hand was over mine before looking back up at me and mouthing ‘you’ve touched his nose’.

              “Please don’t sell yourself short so often.” Asgore asked me, “You have inspired many people- humans and monsters alike. Don’t forget that.”

              “S-Sure.” I stammered, “Now…uh…can we just talk about the weather or something?”

              “Of course.” Asgore settled back down in his seat. He was more than a little smug about turning the tables on me, “I have only experience two of the local storms. Miss Newmore insists that they were small scale to what normally happens.”

              “Those little baby rainfalls?” I snorted, “That’s nothing.”

              The rest of our tea break was filled with conversations about mundane topics. The relaxing, peaceful conversation was a nice reprieve from the earlier, leaden topics. I ended up learning a good bit about the kind of food Asgore likes to eat, and he was shocked to learn that I- like Nadia- played three instruments under order from our parents.

              “Should I walk you to your appointment at the Bitty Care Center?” Asgore offered.

              It wasn’t dark out yet, and we still had some daylight to burn.

              “No.” I shook my head, “If it’s too dark, I’ll just call Papyrus or Sissy.”

              “Are you sure? I do not mind accompanying you. Especially after…” Asgore didn’t say it, but I knew what he was talking about.

              “I haven’t seen that monster again.” I stood on my tiptoes and patted his cheek, “We’ll be fine. You have a ton of meetings tomorrow to prepare for anyways.”

              “bye asgo.” Snooze waved.

              “i hope that we shall meet again soon!” Hiro bounced.

              “GoOdByE yOuR mAjEsTy.” Willoughby didn’t untangle his hands from my hair.

              “If you insist.” Asgore didn’t unlock the front door until he added, “ _Please_ call me if you need anything.”

              “I will. Jeez. You’re worse than Sissy!”

              Asgore didn’t seem to find the comparison offensive in the slightest.

              The walk to the BCC was- as I knew it would be- uneventful. Most of the people we came across were too preoccupied with their phones or their own conversations to pay me much mind. Like always, I walked through the crowd without turning as many heads as Sissy or Nadia would have- not that _that_ was really a bad thing.

              “Hello Miss Newmore.” Karli greeted me, “Are you here for Willoughby’s check-up?”

              “Yup.” I reached up and gently untangled the poppy from his seat. He still wasn’t fond of this place, but given how negative his first introduction was to it, I could understand his fear, “Should we wait out here?”

              “If you wouldn’t mind. This should be quick, and all of our proper exam rooms are filled up at the moment.”

              “Snooze, Hiro, and I will be right out here okay?” I kissed the top of Willoughby’s head comfortingly, “Don’t worry. I doubt there will be anything bad.”

              There was something _kind_ of bad. Karli discovered that chances were high that Willoughby would go into labor prematurely. The bitty baby was developing rapidly due to how it was conceived, and she whispered to me that chances were it wouldn’t be as bad as Tinsel’s birth but nowhere near as smooth as Atlantic’s either. We chose to not tell Willoughby the later part of it to keep his stress from aggravating his condition further.

              Papyrus was a bit sad to hear the news. He didn’t let it hold him down though. The tall skeleton became even _more_ affectionate towards the broken poppy after hearing the news. Hiro and Snooze had also become a little bit clingier to the little guy.

              “Well, I guess we really couldn’t ask for much better.” Harley, who was sleeping with me instead of the couch that night, sighed. Hiro, Snooze, Willoughby, and Papyrus were in the living room having a ‘movie marathon’.

              “We couldn’t.” I agreed, letting my Lil’ Bro play with my hair lovingly, “Doesn’t make it suck any less though.”

              “Hey,” Harley tapped my eyebrows to get my eyes to focus on him, “We should be happy that his body didn’t reject the baby entirely. It can happen a lot easier than most people would expect.”

              “True.” I nodded, “Too bad we still don’t have a name though.”

              “You’re going to think I’ve the worst sense of humor after this, but….a person could say that the relationship between Willoughby and Inigo was toxic right? Poisonous? Like Arsenic?”

              “If you go with this where I think you’re going with this, you do have the worst sense of humor.”

              “Sooo….maybe call him Lace?”

              I swatted him with a pillow.

              “I’m just trying to be helpful! Comedy can help with situations like this. Gallows humor and all!” Harley defended himself.

              “I love you, but please- for the love of _God_ \- do not tell Willoughby about that connection if you offer Lace up as a potential name. I will kill you.” I warned.

              “I wouldn’t. I wouldn’t. I know. I know.” Harley sighed, blocking the next swat of my pillow, “I’m an asshole. Sorry. I’ll go to sleep now.”

              How that ended up being the name Willoughby actually _liked_ is beyond me, but I swore to myself that that poppy was _never_ going to know where the name idea came from. Even if I had to superglue certain Lil’ Bro’s beanie collection together to do it.


	12. Olivia's *Slight* Temper

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I own nothing. Full disclaimer/links can be found in Ch1
> 
> And in this moment we are reminded that Olivia *is* Josephine Newmore's little sister that she pretty much raised by herself. Her temper isn't as bad as Jo's and is mostly turned "on" by injustices done to the people she cares about.

              “I’m so sorry to impose on your day off.” Karli said again, “I know that you work a lot during the week.”

              “WE’RE ALWAYS HAPPY TO HELP YOU KARLI!” Papyrus patted her on the back comfortingly, “YOU CAN COUNT ON THE GREAT, MAGNIFICENT PAPYRUS TO AID YOU IN YOUR TIME OF NEED.”

              “We don’t really have much of a life.” Harley was hanging some Halloween colored garland around the lobby, “This is ‘fun’ for us.”

              “oooohhh!” Hiro popped out of the box of Halloween decorations covered in green glitter and fake spider webs. He held a large, red sequin covered skull up above his head, “look what i found!”

              “hmmm…” Snooze looked at the skull before nodding in approval, “on the desk maybe?”

              “could we maybe put it somewhere near the door?” Hiro pouted some, “i want people to see it!”

              The two continued to debate where to put it. Harley gave Karli a ‘See what I mean?’ look before turning his attention back to taping the garland up properly. The lobby didn’t have anyone in it for a change, so all of us could work together without having to worry about stepping on owners or bitties. Ever since last year’s December attacks, the bitty techs began to limiting the amount of people they trusted. Sissy was probably the only human allowed to go past B2 in the elevator, and I was probably one of the few humans allowed to really walk around the rest of the facility without a constant babysitter.

              “I’m always happy to help Karli.” I carefully adjusted myself on the ladder to hang more black and orange streamers from the ceiling, “Sissy was sorry she couldn’t come. Greyson has been a little under the weather lately, so she and Sans took him to the hospital.”

              “Oh my. Is he okay?” Karli’s pink paw pressed against the side of her face. Unlike most people who did that kind of motion, she did it out of genuine shock and concern, “He’s still so young after all.”

              “He is- mostly. Sissy didn’t tell me everything, but he’s going to be okay.” I assured her.

              “MY BROTHER SENT US PICTURES EARLIER.” Papyrus added, “GREY IS DOING FINE. THEY MOSTLY TOOK HIM AS A WISE PRECAUTION. HE’S **SO** TINY.” Papyrus made a somewhat Greyson sized shape with his hands, “THAT WAS WHY THEY WERE WORRIED SO MUCH.”

              “I see.” Karli was about to say something else when the phone rang, “I need to take that.”

              “Go ahead. We’ll just keep decorating.” I got down to move the ladder and get more streamers, “Willoughby? Are you doing okay sweetheart?”

              “mHm.” Willoughby used his sense of touch to try and tie little bows out of black ribbon. The first few came out more than a little sloppy, but I didn’t want to discourage him from trying to do something. His blindness was a sore spot for the little guy, “StIlL a BiT nAuSeOuS tHoUgH.”

              “Do you need some medication?” Harley teleported down to the desk to grab more garland. Willoughby’s hands tightened on the ribbon in his hands, and the tips of jagged bones popped from the surface of the desk until he calmed down some.

              “nO. i’Ll Be FiNe.” Willoughby managed to keep his voice steady, “ThAnK yOu FoR oFfErInG.”

              “Okay.” Harley shrugged, tossing garland over one shoulder, “Let us know if you need anything bud.”

              “brother!” Hiro held up the red skull, “where do _you_ think this should go?”

              “on the desk.” Snooze crossed his arms.             

              “no!” Hiro pouted, “it needs to be somewhere more interesting! on the door somehow!”

              “How are we going to get it on the door?” Harley asked.

              “umm….” Hiro fell into quiet thought.

              “Let’s just put it on the desk for now and see how things go okay?” Harley’s orange magic picked the skull up from Hiro’s hands, “We’ll find the best place to put it after we get everything else set up since it’s so special.”

              “alright.” Hiro reluctantly sighed. The sad look he shot Snooze would more than likely move a more engaged bitty, but Snooze just shrugged.

              “it should be somewhere people _have_ to see it.” The sleepy said in a tone of finality that kind of let me know that the skull was probably going to stay on the desk, “instead of somewhere it can be ignored.”

              “you can’t ignore the door though!” Hiro protested.

              “GUYS.” Papyrus tried his best to work up a fatherly scowl. At best, he looked like a slightly disappointed sibling trying hard to be responsible, “PLEASE QUIT ARGUING. DON’T FORGET THERE ARE SOME CURLIES IN THE PENS.”

              “oh right.” Hiro clamped a hand over his mouth. He called out in a low whisper, “sorry!”

              Helping out the Bitty Care Center always brought me joy. The bitty techs worked hard to take care of our little companions, and the bitties themselves seemed to appreciate the effort. Last year, the CC didn’t have much time to do anything for Halloween. Velour and Karli were determined to change that. The Bitty CC thrived off of public interactions and promotions after all.

              “IT’S TOO BAD THAT WE WON’T BE ABLE TO HELP WITH THE ACTUAL EVENT.” Papyrus sighed, stringing up deep green and orange lights. There weren’t any strobe lights to lower the chances of humans, bitties, and monsters having seizures, “AT LEAST WE CAN HELP THEM NOW.”

              “Yup.” I smiled down at him.

              “Do not ever contact this center for such things!” Karli’s voice- which had been too low to hear before that point- rose into a rage, “We will _not_ sell bitties. Bitties are to be adopted out to loving, kind families, and it’s sickos like you that make me hate my job sometimes. This call _has_ been recorded as I stated earlier. I **will** be giving it to the police.” With that she slammed the phone down and took a deep breath, “Fuck. Oh…” She looked up as though remembering that the rest of us were there, “Shit. Sorry.”

              “What’s wrong?” I hurried down the ladder.

              “More people being idiots.” Karli sighed, “The bitty fighting rings are beginning to prey on Care Centers now. A couple of the ones in smaller towns are going under, and more than one has been caught selling more aggressive, “problem child” bitties to the rings. They have of course been dealt with. It’s just truly disappointing to see things regress like this again. I guess too many people had money thrown into the rings for them to just shut down.”

              “Yeah…sadly, bad people will always be bad people.” I patted the back of her hand, “Chez Newmore still gets around 10 threats a week. Most of them are harmless, but…well, let’s just say there’s a reason why my staff gets paid so well.”

              “I’m sorry to hear that.” Karli frowned.

              “WE WON’T LET THOSE EVIL CRETINS PUSH US AROUND KARLI! WE’RE FAR TOO UNITED FOR THAT.” Papyrus’s sharp, confident nod helped calm _my_ nerves more than he probably thought it would, “IT MIGHT BE A BIT FRIGHTENING AT TIMES, BUT WE HAVE FRIENDS! LIKE TRUE HEROES, WE HAVE ALLIES WE CAN CALL UPON.”

              “Annd Mom is related to two of the most powerful women in the Ridge cities.” Harley added, “That definitely helps deter a lot of idiots.”

              “tyrone would easily back us up in the court of justice!” Hiro posed with on foot on a small, black skull charm, “all we can do is hope to spread our protection to others.”

              “without getting hurt ourselves.” Snooze slyly interjected, “boxes hurt when thrown through windows.”

              “ThE rInGs…” Willoughby shuddered. The ribbon he was working on tore slightly, “o-O-oH…uUuMm.”

              “It’s alright bud.” I patted his back, “It gives it more of an older look we need anyways!”

              “gOoD.” His hands relaxed from where the gripped the ribbon a little too tightly, “tHe RiNgS aRe StArTiNg To DiE. tHaT’s WhY. bItTiEs, MoNsTeRs, AnD hUmAnS aLl _WaNt_ It To CoNtInUe, So ThEy StRuGgle AgAiNsT nEw LaWs.”

              “The bitties themselves….?” Karli looked horrified.

              “Raze said that some of them get sucked into that kind of lifestyle.” Harley explained further, “It’s kind of like asking a hardened criminal and addict to give up all of their vices- not easy, pleasant, or fun.”

              “It’s too bad that there isn’t a way for fighting ring bitties to get the help they need.” I frowned and crossed my arms, “Why hasn’t someone started a charity for that for pete’s sake?”

              “I suppose it’s because we’ve already got a charity for bitties who have dealt with bad owners.” Karli looked at some paperwork for the few charities the CC ran, “People don’t realize that fighting ring bitties need completely different care than others.”

              “Hmmm….” I bit my tongue in thought.

              “MAYBE WE SHOULD START SOMETHING!” Papyrus slid up behind me and rested his chin on the top of my head, “CREATE SOMETHING TO HELP OTHER BITTIES LIKE WILLOUGHBY!”

              “That’s not a bad idea Papyrus.” I tapped my chin, “I might see if  I can get Nadia, Sissy, and Granny down to help too.”

              “they’ll probably say yes.” Snooze knew my family of self-sacrificing martyrs a little too well sometimes.

              “Agreed.” Harley snorted, “We’ve definitely got the perfect poster boy for it though.” He nodded in Willoughby’s direction.

              _As sad as that is….it’s the truth. Raze and Sunshine would probably be willing to contribute to it as well._

              “dO yOu ThInK iT cOuLd hElP?” Willoughby asked while stacking the black bows into a neat pile, “i WoUlDn’T mInD.”

              “We still need to put a few things together first baby.” My mind was already racing with ideas however, “I’ll call the rest of my family about it.”

              “OkAy.” Willoughby went to grab a bow that was closer to the edge of the desk.

              “Oh hey.” Harley teleported onto the desk between Karli and I, “Speaking of things-“

              Willoughby stumbled off of the desk. Papyrus and I both practically screamed at the top our lungs and scrambled to grab him, but Harley’s magic reached him first. Within seconds, he had the taller poppy cradled awkwardly in his arms.

              “Sorry.” Harley apologized. Willoughby was motionless in his grasp, “Should’ve warned you I was teleporting.” Gingerly setting him down, Harley’s eyes flickered across the oblong swell under Willoughby’s shirt, “Do you want to have Lace checked out?”

              Willoughby’s hands raced across his stomach despite his obvious fear about Harley being so close.

              “nO. wE’rE fInE…yOu CaUgHt Us.” Willoughby trembled slightly.

              “Phew.” Harley took some loud steps backwards that made Willoughby calm down. He turned to face Karli, “I was going to ask if you guys had received the care package that Granny sent. She messaged me asking me to check and see.”

              “We did.” Karli, who was just as relieved as Papyrus, Snooze, Hiro, and I that Willoughby and Lace were safe, “You can tell her that we are deeply humbled by her kindness.”

              “She just wanted to know that you got it.” Harley shrugged, “She’s not the glory seeking, virtue signaling type. Anyways, I’ll get back to trying to get all of this fucking garland hanging properly. I can understand getting the cheap stuff because its…well… _cheap_ , but this shit really doesn’t want to hang properly.”

              “harley!” Hiro scolded him, “if sunny were here, he’d be scolding you like crazy!”

              “Guess it’s a good thing Mr. Mom isn’t here to chastise me then.” Harley said smugly.

              “no….but we can still message him about it later.” Snooze reminded him, “he doesn’t want another bitty baby exposed to a lot of swearing.”

              “Yeah.” Karli chuckled, “You should hear how much accidental swearing Tinsel let’s slip.” She whistled, “Sunshine doesn’t like it when he finds out.”

              “VULGAR LANGUAGE ISN’T A GOOD THING TO BEGIN WITH. THERE ARE OTHER WAYS TO EXPRESS DISPLEASURE MORE ELOQUENTLY AND EFFICIENTLY.” Papyrus’s stance had always been firm in that regard.

              “It’s not as fun though. Curse words intentionally have harsh consonant sounds that make them feel _so_ good to say because you almost feel like you’re hitting someone with your words.” Growing up with Sissy as my only real mother figure taught me that real quick. I didn’t swear as _much_ as Sissy did, but I knew just how good it felt to let out a long string of curse words, “Anyways, Willoughby? Are you sure you’re alright?”

              “I aM.” He inssited, “sHaKeN a LiTtLe, BuT oKaY.”

              “please be more careful.” Hiro begged from where he was sorting bits of tinsel by color, “it’s be terrible if you got hurt!”

              “i WiLl.” Willoughby looked down at Hiro fondly, “AlRiGhT?”

              “thank you!” Hiro beamed.

              “good.” Snooze had teleported onto the desk for the sole purpose of patting Willoughby’s back. The poppy startled slightly, but he relaxed upon realizing that it was just Snooze, “got to keep you safe. good father would want me to.”

              Willoughby blinked at Snooze.

              “HoW dO yOu KnOw ThAt NaMe?” His voice was quiet.

              “Huh?” I blinked.

              Any further conversation was cut off by a group of rowdy college kids sauntering into the lobby like they owned the place. It was almost hard to believe that I had been as catty and bratty as these little shits back in the day, but Sissy insisted I had been.

              “Hello.” Karli tried her best to greet the group warmly while simultaneously preventing them from squishing Hiro under foot. My bitties all hurried over to Papyrus and I, “How can I help you today?”

              “Why does it look like a cheap Halloween party threw up in here?” One of the girls sneered.

              “We’re decorating for the season actually. The CC is planning on hosting a trick or treat event as well.” Karli’s smile seemed surprisingly _not_ fake, “We techs are hoping to encourage more people to think about adopting while letting the children get some fun out of it.”

              “Oh, so you’re like, abusing the young minds of children.” One of the little fucking _hookers_ \- my patience was wearing thin with early on- popped her gum like she was in some cheesy chick flick, “How rude.”

              “No!” Karli protested.

              “But you said you wanted to use the event to just get people to adopt.” One of the boys in the group shoved a phone camera in her face, “So, are things like people say they are? Are you just looking for a quick way to make monsters a quick buck?”

              “What!? Who in the world is claiming such things?!?!” Karli’s annoyed protested drew out some of the bitty techs from the back, “We are focused first and foremost on protecting and caring for our bitties and finding them good forever homes.”

              “Quit lying.” Another chimed in, “Everyone knows that this just a façade for anti-human hate groups! Three of your previous workers assaulted two teenage girls.”

              “That was a false claim that led them being murdered in the streets.” I could tell Karli was getting a bit worked up, and it was easy to understand why. One of the killed had been her younger brother.

              “Enough!” I snapped. For a couple of surprising heartbeats, only the clicking of my heels echoed through the lobby as I walked over to Karli's side trying my best to not froth at the mouth completely, “What the hell do you think you’re doing? First of all, the care center is to be come to only for adoption, bitty aid, and bitty information. You’re not doing any of the above. Secondly, you’re using false information that has been proven untrue by three individual investigations and perpetuating the loss of life caused by vigilantes not waiting to _learn_ the truth. If you aren’t here to adopt, talk about adopting, or offering your aid as a volunteer, you should leave. You’re just cluttering up the lobby and getting in everyone’s way.”

              “Who do you think you are?” Bubblegum Hoe looked ready to slap me.

              “Olivia Penelope Newmore.” I stood protectively in front of Karli, “I’m the owner of Chez Newmore, one of the fastest growing restaurants in the city, and one of the three Newmore sisters.”

              That shut the intelligent ones up quickly.

              “These bitties don’t deserve to be treated like this.” _Sissy, wherever you are right now, I hope you’ve got a good dose of pride warming you up from the inside._ “The monsters who work here don’t deserve to be pushed around or have their words twisted. I understand that you’re probably just ‘misguided’ youth, but if you don’t back off, you’ll get some very harsh lessons in reality.”

              _I will protect my bitties. I will protect **bitties** in general. I’ll use this damnable last name for some good at the very least!_

              “Some trust fund brat isn’t going to tell me what to do.” Miss Sneer got up in my face, “Why don’t _I_ teach you a couple of lessons in reality.”

              “Do not lay a hand on me.” I warned.

              She put a hand on me- around my wrist to be specific.

              So I broke her elbow with a quick, easy twist maneuver Sissy taught me. I really got lucky that I did it fast enough to break bone, and I knew that I would _probably_ feel bad about…

              Oh I’m not going to lie.

              I wanted to bury my stilettos in her eyes.

              I regretted nothing.

              The police did have to question me about it though. I think the brat expected her ‘video evidence’ to help _herself_ out. She failed to realize that, technically speaking, she was the one touching and threatening me. Thus, she got jail time, and I got home in time for dinner.

              “I’m so going to regret doing that.” I sighed, plopping down onto the couch, “Expect more death threats to roll on through Papyrus. I’m sorry.”

              “YOU HONESTLY REMIND ME TOO MUCH OF YOUR SISTER SOMETIMES.” Papyrus sighed, handing me an ice pack for the bruise on my wrist.

              “you were so cool mama!” Hiro bounced up and down on my leg.

              “And extremely stupid.” Harley swatted the back of my head, “What if they all jumped you at once or something? You could’ve seriously gotten hurt!”

              “I didn’t really think about that.” I hung my head, “Mostly I was pissed about them throwing Karli’s brother’s murder back in her face without even _thinking_ about it. I mean, what kind of person just brings up murder without doing some research!? How did they miss that Karlton was a pink rabbit? How many fucking pink rabbits are there in the world? Two! Karli and Mama Cry! Jeez. They got me all worked up. I’m probably going to get some acne from this.” I wrinkled my nose at the idea.

              “i’m glad you’re safe.” Snooze nuzzled his face into my knee, “please don’t turn into your sister. we’ve heard the horror stories.”

              I actually got a laugh out of that one.

              “Oh trust me. I’ve got a wee bit of a temper when my buttons are pushed, but I’m _nowhere_ near as bad as Sissy!”

              **Thankfully.**


	13. (Un)Calm Fear

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I own nothing. Full disclaimer/ links can be found in Ch1
> 
> Rooommaannncceee...because I want Asgore to be happy :x

              “You’ve got to be kidding me.” I groused, glaring at the threats painted on the walls of my restaurant, “I don’t know whether I should be happy or annoyed this was done on the alley walls or not.” Even the dumbest criminal in Grayridge knew that the main street was _covered_ in security cameras that were always active. That didn’t stop some idiots from committing crimes, but it also meant that smart ones traveled in the back alleys to avoid being spotted, “We probably won’t find these little shits either.” I was getting tired of having to get rid of this kind of vandalism. Some of my good friends were graffiti artists who painted by building, so it wasn’t just my hard work they were ruining.

              “Chef?” Ilya poked his little head out, “We’re starting to get our first few customers.”

              “Alright. Thank you Ilya.” I smiled at him.

              “We also got a few more threats in the mail. Rosie called the cops, so they should come by to pick up the evidence.” Ilya held the door open for me as I walked back into my kitchens, “It was a smart move to get shatter proof windows in the front. We had a few more bricks outside.”

              “Jeez.” I pulled my long hair up into its usual tight bun, “This is _not_ what I intended to happen. I’m sorry that working conditions aren’t the best. I’m just getting so fed up with the bitty fighting rings.”

              “We know.” Damon was working on some appetizers, “Crazies will be crazy though. Some guy actually tried to take Con’s little girl’s bitty.” Damon gestured to my ex-con dessert _master_ helping Avirai- a falcon monster- move things around in the back, “He grabbed the bitty in time, but he couldn’t kick the guys ass without breaking his probation.”

              “Pfft..” Rosie snorted, “I live in the ghetto. These little fuckers can kiss my ass. Their fear tactics don’t scare me. It’s those quiet ones that are putting my teeth on edge.”

              “Quiet ones?” I questioned.

              “She means these creepy ass bastards who linger around the building.” Con- who’s actual name was so embarrassing he tried his best to forget it- elaborated, “We snapped pictures of them once or twice, but the freaks are too slick to get their faces in caught in frame. They just seem to be watching us.”

              “A couple have actually threatened Vipiria and I on our way home.” Avirai shuddered, her feathers standing up on edge, “Her fangs aren’t just for show though.”

              “Mmhmm.” Vipiria nodded, “I’m not about to let them just push me around. Bastards.”

              “As nice and heartwarming as all of this is,” Irene, the former teacher, held up a couple of tickets, “But we’ve got work to do! Pap can’t do it all on his own you know.”

              “SOME HELP WOULD BE APPRECIATED.” Papyrus worked hard with Hiro and Harley helping him out.

              “On it.” I nodded, “Let’s go.”

              I felt a flicker of pride in my chest after couple of hours at work. All of my workers kept coming back. I was so glad I didn’t accidentally end up hiring a bunch of cowards who leave Papyrus and I in a lurch once things got tough.

              “Chef!” Rosie called out to me, “The cops are here. Want me to handle it?”

              “Yes. Con! Take over Rosie’s work until she gets back.”

              “Yes chef.” Con nodded and switched gears.

              “Chef,” Damon slid up next to me holding a plate with undercooked chicken, “She almost poisoned a kid with nut allergies a couple of weeks ago, and this is the fifth time she’s almost sent out undercooked protein to a customer over the past two days.”

              My eyes flickered up to the girl who seemed completely unaware of her mistakes. I wanted her to get better at what she was doing, but we couldn’t keep having her messing things up. Damon was only supposed to help out until I found a replacement for the server I booted- which I had already done. He stuck on though once he noticed how poorly one of my new workers performed in the kitchen.

              “The woman is pregnant. This….wouldn’t have ended well.” Damon sighed.

              “I’ll deal with it.” My lips set into a grim line, “We can’t keep letting this slide.”

              I ended up firing the poor girl. She was frantic and sobbing, but if she killed a customer, it would be on everyone’s heads. After encouraging her to maybe take more cooking classes and definitely improve her base skills, I asked Irene to put out a ‘now hiring’ ad online and in the newspaper.

              “did you fire the nut girl?” Snooze looked up at me while I worked. Willoughby had been feeling particularly nauseous that day, so my sleepy tended to rotate between caring for the poppy and helping us around the kitchen.

              “I did.” I nodded over to where Damon, who was restaurant line cook and server veteran at that point, had taken over, “She almost served raw meat to a pregnant woman. I hope she doesn’t give up her dreams of cooking, but she really needs to improve on some of her abilities.”

              “you’ve never served raw meat before?” Snooze raised a brow.

              “I did when I was a teenager just learning how to cook.” I laughed at the memories, “Sissy ended up on more than one trip to the hospital due to food poisoning. Then I got a culinary degree, and let me tell you, some of those teachers are _brutal_. I don’t think I’ve served any raw meat since my time at college. The teachers would let you have it if you did, and you would fail that assignment no matter what. Food safety is a top priority. It’s why I don’t do anything with pufferfish.”

              “hmm….” Snooze handed me some of the oil I needed, “we need to get a new person?”

              “Yup. Irene’s working on a new ad.”

              “okay.” Snooze nodded.

              He stayed and helped me for a little bit longer before hurrying back to go check on Willoughby. The two seemed particularly interested in each other ever since the ‘good father’ comment. Not in any romantic way of course. Honestly, Snooze reminded me of a child too much for me to picture him with anyone. He and Willoughby did seem to have a new connection though, and that new connection just confused Hiro and Harley who were often out of the loop in their quiet conversations about the ‘good father’.

              _“I honestly have no idea who they’re talking about most of the time.” Harley shrugged, “Given how old Snooze probably is, I’d say it’s some monster back from the Underground, but they refuse to elaborate further because ‘father said not to’ apparently.”_

              _“they worry me sometimes.” Hiro sighed letting me scrub the top of his head with a loofah, “this really weird, blank look will sometimes come across their face. they don’t respond to anyone until they snap out of it.”_

              Asgore seemed just as concerned when Harley, Hiro, and I expressed our concerns to him over tea one Sunday. He found himself reminded of an old experiment that some royal scientists did without Dr. Gaster’s permission. The experiment ended in failure, but the subjects were known to go into fits of melancholy or blankness that would persist for a couple of hours before returning back to normal. The device used was destroyed in the explosion that presumably killed Dr. Gaster and injured his son. That didn’t stop Asgore from worrying that someone had somehow replicated the effect in some way. I had Snooze and Willoughby examined out of concern. The tests resulted in nothing. The two had weird magic pulses, but that was apparently a common thing among bitties- kind of like humans having a slight arrhythmia.

              “LIVI?” Papyrus tapped my shoulder, “YOU CAN GO ON YOUR LUNCH BREAK NOW.”

              “Oh you’re back?” I blinked, checking the clock, “I guess I got too caught up in work.”

              “FOCUSING ON SOMETHING IMPORTANT IS NOT A BAD THING.” Papyrus patted my head, “BUT MY DEAR FRIEND, YOU MUST TAKE BREAKS. EVEN THE GREAT PAPYRUS REQUIRES A BREATHER AFTER HOURS OF WORKING BACK HERE.”

              “I know.” I squeezed his cheek, “I’ll go eat lunch then. Hiro and Harley ate with you right?”

              “i did.” Hiro popped up on Papyrus’s shoulder, “harley didn’t want to ‘disturb’ willoughby though, so the big dummy isn’t eating despite the marvelous baby blue telling him he needs to!”

              “I’ll grab him.” I took the hair net I wore off. My forehead rejoiced, “He’s going to end up collapsing otherwise.”

              Harley was focusing on helping Avirai out, but my falcon monster staff member happily handed him over to let him get some grub.

              “You’re going to make yourself sick.” She made a slightly annoyed clicking sound with her beak, “Go eat silly bitty.”

              “Willoughby’s back there though.” Harley protested as I carried him along with me. Sissy had taught me how to hold teleporting bitties just right to keep them from teleporting out of my hand.

              “Willoughby doesn’t freak out as much.” I rolled my eyes, “Unless you’ve forgotten, you’ve held him like a princess as this point. I’d say he’s adjusting.”

              “Still….” Harley protested warily.

              “’Still’ nothing mister.” I kissed the top of his head, “You are eating lunch with me. Deal with it.”

              “Chef!” Ilya approached me with Asgore behind him, “His majesty came by. I let him in since you’re on your lunch break….” He looked away timidly.

              “That’s great Ilya. Hey Asgore.” I smiled at my tea buddy, “You can head on back to my office if you’d like. Harley why don’t you go with him?” I loosened my grip on Harley and he- wisely- teleported onto Asgore’s shoulder. The king nodded at me politely before heading to my office, “Ilya, you’re going to go run an errand for Irene right?”

              “Yup.” Ilya nodded fixing his new scarf. Con, Rosie, Damon, and I pitched in to buy it for him as a thank-you in June because he really came through for us when a family of 30 filled the restaurant, “I’ll try to be back as soon as possible.”

              “Take my umbrella.” I said, “The skies are getting more than a little ugly looking. I don’t want you ending up wet.”

              “Alright.” Ilya honestly worried me sometimes. Unlike Grillby, Sans’s buddy, he didn’t seem to worry about getting wet. He said it was because his smaller frame made his flames grow hotter easier, so he could evaporate light rain before it even touched him, but Ilya forgot that rain was never ‘light’ in Grayridge, “Just help keep you happy.” He beamed up at me.

              “Silly monster.” I chuckled patting the top of his head. His flames actually molded under my hand like hair, “Don’t forget to tell Heats that if he needs a job we could always find something for him to do.”

              “I will.” Ilya sighed, “He’s just been getting sick so often. I think it’s because Grillby moved to Greenridge with Fuku.”

              Ilya left to go run Irene’s errand after that. Asgore waited patiently for me in my office with Willoughby running his hands through the king’s white fur. Snooze  and Asgore were chatting about something in quiet voices while Harley ate his lunch quietly on the edge of my desk.

              “Sorry about that.” I sat down and pulled my own lunch out, “Want some?” I offered.

              “No.” Asgore shook his head, “I’m fine. One of my coworkers brought food in for all of us today, so I’ve already eaten.”

              “M’kay.” I shrugged and took a bite of the simple sandwich I had prepared for myself, “What did you need Asgore?”

              “asgo is wondering if-“ Asgore’s hands quickly muffled the rest of Snooze’s sentence. He cleared his throat awkwardly after he felt the bitty go silent. Snooze looked up at him once released and simply said, “you are a big scaredy cat. be brave.”

              “As wise as those words are, I don’t think it would be wise to _start_ with that.” He patted the top of Snooze’s head. Then the king looked up at me, “I came because I heard about what happened to Avirai and Vipiria. Then Ilya told me more about the problems you’ve been having ever since that video of you chastising those students went viral. Papyrus seemed fine when I spoke to him yesterday, but I wanted to make sure that you were doing okay.”

              “Aw.” I blushed a little bit, “You were worried about me. That’s sweet of you Asgore. I’ve been doing okay. Obviously, things are a bit more tense because of…well....you know.” I shrugged, “The death threats, the bricks lining the front of our building, the vandalism in the alleyways, and….the….” My stomach churned- almost making me regret eating, “…the dust we keep finding around the building. It’s a bit maddening, but the police have Chez Newmore under surveillance now. Sissy also hired some bodyguards to work during the evening. I just really wished that I could provide a safer environment for my workers mostly. A lot of it seems to be slowly dying back down though. The people mostly messing with us now are from the bitty fighting rings.”

              “I heard that they can be quite merciless.” Asgore frowned, “Did they not hospitalize your sister last year?”

              “They did.” I nodded, “Ran her off the road and almost killed her in the process.”

              “…..You’re surprisingly nonchalant about all of this.” Asgore’s brows furrowed.

              “I don’t have many options do I?” I cocked my head to the right, “We’re rounding up the people who’ve been vandalizing us and threatening us, but there will always be more to finish where they started. I’ve only got two options. One is to roll over belly up and let vile hate like this continue to spread. The one I’m going with is staying strong and hoping that my patience pays off….” I paused. Stupidity wasn’t in the Newmore genes. We were pushy, impulsive, and a bit temperamental, but only our parents had been fanatical to the point of foolishness, “I’m in a good bit of danger right now. I _hope_ that if anything violent comes our way, it’s directed at me personally. I’d rather be the one in the hospital than be the person standing by one of my workers on a ventilator you know?”

              “It shouldn’t be at this point at all.” Asgore’s low bass seemed to reach even lower levels out of anger, “It’s wrong that you, your staff, and Papyrus have to live like this.”

              “mmhmm.” Snooze nodded in agreement.

              “tHeY wOn’T sToP tHoUgH….” Willoughby sighed, “nOt UnTiL tHeY dRaW bLoOd.”

              My teeth clenched. Talking big was one thing, but I did remember how beat up Sissy looked despite hours of healing and medical treatments. It was a royal pain in the ass that people like these- people who could _hurt_ without caring- were allowed to saunter around while people who commit pettier crimes are thrown in prisons with some of the cruelest people in the world.

              “Olivia.”

              I didn’t realize that my hands had begun to tremble a little. Unlike Sissy or Nadia, I couldn’t really keep my composure under duress. _I did take my medicine this morning at least._ The warmth of Asgore’s hand on mine helped calm me down a little. The scary things I tried to pretend weren’t happening in my peripheral awareness didn’t seem as frightening when he was around.

              “I will do everything in my power to help you.” Asgore promised me, “Think of it as repayment for all of the help you’ve given to my subjects.”

              “Asgo.” I tried my best to tease him, “We’re not in high school you know. You guys don’t ‘owe’ me anything. It’s just the right thing to do. I wouldn’t argue to you maybe walking me home on nights Papyrus has to leave early though.”

              “I’ll be there.” Asgore nodded, “I will also be contacting a few of the members of the old royal guard. They could help during the day.”

              “I wouldn’t want to impose.” I protested.

              “We’ll take it.” Harley threw at grape at the side of my head to get me to shut up.

              “Harley.” I tsked. He interrupted me before I could continue.

              “I’m tired of seeing you go to sleep like a terrified child every night.” He kicked my elbow, “It sucks to watch you know. Suck up that Newmore pride of yours and just let the guy help out.”

              “Oh Harley.” The cranky, worried expression he wore reminded me that my bitties tended to be more observant than I gave them credit for, “I’m sorry.” I looked Snooze and Willoughby and saw that they were equally concerned, “Darn. I’ve just been worrying everyone haven’t I? Alright. Alright. I guess it’d be stupid to not take any help offered in this situation.”

              “good.” Snooze nodded.

              “PeRhApS iT’lL lOwEr YoUr StReSs LeVeLs.” Willoughby cautiously crossed my desk to pat my hand. He flinched upon realizing how close he was to Harley, but he still hugged my arm, “YoU wOrRy Me A lOt.”

              I snorted back a laugh and tugged the poppy closer to plant a kiss on the top of the head.

              “Talk about hypocrisy.” I grumbled before looking back up at Asgore, “Anyways, is that all you needed Asgo?”

              “Ye-“

              “no.” Snooze rolled his eyes at me like I had asked a stupid question, “he wants to know if you’d be willing to go on a date with him.”

              I don’t think I’ve ever seen someone sit so perfectly still in my entire life. Asgore’s skin turned bright red beneath his white fur, bright enough that I could see it. Shocked silence descended on the office as I tried to process what my bitty had just spouted out.

              “Asgore?” I asked calmly, “Is this true.”

              “Ah, yes.” Asgore moved at last to nod, “I intended to wait after hearing about how rough things have been for you lately though.” Asgore sent a soft glare at Snooze, “I didn’t want to add to your stress if I could avoid it, and I wasn’t quite certain if you were interes-“

              “I would love to.” I smiled my large, bright smile for the first time in what felt like ages, “Absolutely, positively. You don’t even need to ask really.”

              “…I…see.” Asgore cleared his throat, “Next Sunday then?”

              “Sure.” Little bubbles of excitement already began to pop in my chest. This would be my first date in a long time, and I would be going on one with a genuinely nice guy, “Do you want me to come to your house?”

              “No.” Asgore shook his head, “I’ll come pick you up.”

              _Gentleman._

              After getting a time from Asgore, I finished my lunch and escorted him out of the building. Willoughby felt well enough to help out in the kitchen some, so he and Snooze were back to helping everyone out. The rest of my day went by well. My shoulders felt lighter than usual.

              “I’m back!” Ilya called out as he returned to the kitchen, “It is starting to sprinkle a bit. Apparently, it’s going to get really rainy this weekend.”

              “Does someone need to cover for you on Sunday? We’re getting a delivery.” Damon asked.

              “Nah.” Ilya shook his head and threw himself into his work, “I’ll be fine. All of the rain should be mostly gone by lunchtime, and the delivery isn’t until late in the afternoon.”

              “Keep my umbrella with you then.” I ordered him, “I know your last one broke.”

              “But what if you need it?” Ilya pouted.

              “I’ll be fine. None of my bitties are flame elementals, so a little water won’t kill us.” I patted his shoulder, “I’ll tape it to your arm if I have to Ilya.”

              “Yes chef.” Ilya sighed petulantly.

              “Sounds more like you should be saying ‘yes mom’.” Rosie teased.

              _I let these guys get away with too much back talk._ I thought to myself. Some part of me realized I was a bit more lenient on all of them because they were skilled, efficient, and always got the work done without complaining. They also stuck with me through thick or thin. It was hard to get loyalty given returned back in some way.

              Which is why what happened next broke my heart utterly and completely.


	14. Too Close to Home

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I own nothing. Full disclaimer/links can be found in Ch1
> 
> I still probably need to work on my foreshadowing more.

              “What do you think?” I twirled around in the simple mint green, short sundress, “Pretty enough for a date with a king? Too underdressed? To _over_ dressed? Oh dear…I don’t know what would be worse at this point.”

              “Mom.” Harley poked his head out from where he had been buried under a lot of my clothing during my wardrobe panic, “You’ve looked amazing in just about everything so far.”

              “yes mama!” Hiro agreed while trying to find some light jewelry that would go well with the dress I was currently wearing, “you look amazing in anything, and that dress looks spectacular- no awe-inspiring on you!”

              “Hiro.” I giggled, “I think you’re a little too biased to comment cutie.”

              “mama does look good in anything.” Snooze frowned, “this would look good with flats though. you don’t know where asgo is taking you mimi.”

              “hE hAs A pOiNt.” Willoughby agreed, “YoU dOn’T kNoW wHeRe YoU’rE gOiNg.”

              “True.” I looked at my white toe nails with a cute green and blue cherry blossom design painted on them, “I’m thinking…maybe those cute sandals over there and some pretty pearl earrings. I wonder if Papyrus could do my hair. He does a surprisingly good curved Dutch braid.”

              “I’ll go ask.” Harley offered.

              _I don’t think I’ve been this nervous about a date since I was sixteen._ I began to put on some simple make up. _Though I was mostly worried about Jo running my date over when I got home…._

              “here are the pearl earrings mama!” Hiro offered them up to me.

              “Thank you sweetheart.” I paused my motions to quickly take out the simple hoops I had been wearing and slid them in, “Could you go grab my white sandals for me please?”

              “already got them.” Snooze dropped them by my feet.

              “Oh, thanks.” While still doing my make up, I slid my feet into the sandals.

              “LIVI?” Papyrus poked his head in with his eyes closed, “HARLEY SAID YOU WANTED ME TO BRAID YOUR HAIR?”

              “I’m decent Pap.” My wry smile grew bigger after he opened his eyes, “It’s kind of sad that my skeleton apartment mate can braid human hair better than I can.”

              “DO NOT WORRY!” Papyrus patted my back, “THE GREAT PAPYRUS IS CAPABLE OF _MANY_ THINGS WITH EASE. IT’S NO FAULT OF YOURS. AFTER ALL, YOU’RE THE ONE WHO GAVE ME MY COOL NEW WARDROBE.”

              “Yeah.” I giggled, “It took us forever to piece it together too since you’re so tall.”

              “We had to get a lot custom tailored right?” Harley said, releasing a huff of harmless bitty cigarette smoke. If monsters could ever create a cigarette that could effect humans in the same way without any of the negative consequences of the disgusting things we have nowadays, they could make a lot of money, “It paid off in the end though. You shouldn’t need clothing for another five or ten years at the very least.”

              “brother.” Hiro’s exasperated but affectionate sigh drew Harley’s attention, “fashion trends come and go remember?”

              “Please don’t tell me you’re going to turn into some beauty bitty guru.” Harley snorted.

              “though i suppose if i must bring up my amazing fashion sense that mama cultivated,” Hiro glared at the dingy, old orange hoodie Harley still wore, “that thing needs to go.”

              “Not happening.” Harley tucked his hands in his pockets, “Love this thing too much to part with it. You haven’t parted with that old scarf.”

              “hmmm…touché brother touché.” Hiro adjusted his slightly tattered blue scarf.

              “willoughby will need new clothes though.” Snooze made a shrinking motion, “he’s going to get tinier.”

              “hAhA…” Willoughby’s hands felt down the swell of his stomach, “a SaD bUt TrUe ObSeRvAtIoN.”

              “I hope you don’t lose too much weight.” It would be shame for his body to regress back that far, “Velour says you’re at just the right weight for a bitty this far along…”

              “WE’LL JUST HAVE TO FEED HIM MORE.” Papyrus clenched a ponytail holder between his teeth, “IT WON’T BE HARD WITH OUR MARVELOUS COOKING.”

              The easy banter that followed help calm me down some. I really was getting ridiculously nervous. Asgore and I had been fine in private conversations so far. There was no need to be this shaky about the whole thing. _Still, I’m going on a date with the KING of monsters. It’s not like he’s going to **anything** like the other guys I’ve dated. _

              “DONE!” Papyrus looked at his handiwork with a proud smile, “BRILLIANT!”

              “It really is Pap.” I took a deep breath and turned to face him, “Are you sure you’ll be alright with all of the bitties?”

              “WE’RE GOING TO VISIT SANS!” Papyrus stood with his hands on his hips proudly, “I WILL BE HAVING A COOKING COMPETITION WITH CYAN AND SUNSHINE.”

              “Tinsel said that there was no way Papyrus’s cooking could beat his dad’s.” Harley explained.

              “I see.” I kissed Papyrus’s cheek, “Break a leg. From what I’ve heard from Sissy and Sans, they’ll be hard to beat.”

              “that just means they’re worthy adversaries!” Hiro hopped up and down on my bed, “i can’t wait!”

              “Please don’t let him kill anyone.” I whispered to Papyrus.

              “I’LL DOUBLE CHECK ANYTHING HE COOKS.” Papyrus promised me.

              “mimi.” Snooze held up one of my silver bracelets, “something shiny for your wrist.”

              “They are kind of bare huh…” I looked down at them before reaching down and taking the bracelet from him, “Thank you sweet heart.” Clasping the bracelet around my wrist I looked at Willoughby, “Will you be okay at Sissy’s house Willoughby?”

              “MhM.” Willoughby nodded, “iT’lL bE gOoD tO sEe SuNsHiNe AgAiN.”

              “Okay.” My mind raced for any last minute things before Asgore showed up, “Stay safe. Stay on the main roads- don’t take alley shortcuts….I love you guys.” I beamed at all of them.

              “I LOVE YOU TOO MY BESTEST HUMAN FRIEND.” Papyrus squeezed me into a tight hug.

              Asgore showed up a couple of minutes later. It was still a bit odd to see him out of his courtly regalia. The ornate, mostly for show armor or the elaborate, dark formal wear had practically been glued to him the entire time I knew him, so seeing him in plain jeans and a button up was more than little welcome and odd- especially since his usual casual wear had normally consisted of “Hawaiian” shirts and khakis.

              “Olivia.” Asgore nodded politely, “You look beautiful.”

              “Thanks.” I would _not_ be telling him about the hour and half it took me to just decide whether or not I would be wearing a dress, “You look great in semi-casual you know. Not that your armor looks bad or anything. This is just a very nice surprise.”

              “I’m glad to hear it. Are you ready, or do you need a few more minutes?” Asgore’s head tilted to the side some. The ways his ears shifted with the motion made me giggle despite the fact I had seen them do that hundreds of times already. _I’m seriously acting like I’m 14._

              “No.” I reached back for my little white purse that had my phone and wallet in it, “I’m good to go if you are. Boys!” I called back through the apartment, “I’m gone! Be safe walking to Sissy’s!”

              “It’s broad daylight Mom.” Harley yawned from where he had begun to doze off on the couch, “We’ll  probably be home before you are.”

              “Maybe.” I shrugged. I stepped out of the apartment and made sure the front door was locked before turning to face Asgore, “So? Where _are_ we going?”

              “Somewhere.” Asgore responded.

              “Asgo.” I hung my purse over one shoulder and followed Asgore towards his simple blue truck. It was probably a gas guzzler, but I was willing to bet money the nearly 7 foot tall king was just happy to have a car he could sit in comfortably, “Are we going out of Grayridge?”

              “Not too far.” Asgore opened the door for me.

              “Well look at this. Chivalry isn’t dead.” I hopped up inside grateful that I had chosen to wear flats instead of heels. As beautiful as a pair of striking stilettos were, the potential embarrassment of falling while trying to get into his truck wasn’t worth the aesthetic value.

              “Years of court etiquette lessons seemed to have paid off then.” Asgore shut my door and strode over to the driver’s side to get in. He continued his train of thought as he got into the truck, “I’m glad.”

              “Court etiquette lessons?” I asked as he cranked the truck, “You actually had court etiquette lessons?”

              “Ever since I was young yes.” Asgore smiled at the memories, “They were rather difficult at times- especially when I went through my ‘I’m better than everyone’ phase. My father looked ready to crack my horns in half.”

              “No way. You were a bad boy at some point?” I stared at him in amused shock, “I was wondering if my usual tastes were broken. I have a tendency to like dark and mysterious men. You’re the polar opposite of that now, but I guess I’m still a magnet for that type of guy.”

              “You dated bad boys?” Asgore laughed, “I can’t see your sister liking that very much.”

              “Oh she didn’t.” I sighed as I remember a particularly funny if embarrassing memory, “Right after I got my license at 16, my current boyfriend at the time convinced me to go to a party. I already wasn’t supposed to be seeing him since he was 19 and a known ‘bad boy’, but I was also in that ‘I’m better than everyone phase’. I took my car without Sissy’s knowledge and went to the party. He and I both got plastered.”

              “I take it Josephine showed up at the party furious?” Asgore guessed.

              “Nope. We drove home in my car lucky as hell that we didn’t hurt anyone. When I got home, Sissy was waiting for me with a couple of things on the porch. One of them was a gun she borrowed from our neighbors that she used to scare him off. The next was the sledgehammer she used to destroy all of my electronics- including my TV. Then she took the tires off my car, made me hand over my license, and removed my registration and proof of insurance from my car. I was too drunk to really do much protesting, so I didn’t realize how screwed I was until the next morning, rocking a major headache. After a good bit of my hang over passed and I quit whining so much, Sissy sat me down in front of the television and played a DVD she had burned. It was filled with all of these news stories about drunk drivers getting involved in accidents- dying, killing or injuring others- and teens who went out without telling their parents who were kidnapped, murdered, or raped. I had to watch all of it, and I was grounded for an entire year after that.”

              “Wow.” Asgore blinked.

              “It sounds terrible I know, but it definitely taught me a lesson.” I smiled fondly, “Sissy wanted me to know just how much danger I had put myself and other people in. Boy did it work. I haven’t _touched_ alcohol since then. I also made a rule for myself that I would quit dating bad boys, but I guess some rules are just meant to be broken.” I winked at him, “What about you Asgo? Do you have any crazy stories to tell?”

              “Well….there was this time that Toriel and I snuck out of the castle...” Asgore began.

              It was almost surprising how easily we could just _talk_. Usually talking was the worst part of the date. With Asgore, conversation just flowed easily. We bounced from stories from our past to crazy urban legends we heard to some of our favorite kinds of movies. I ended up letting it slip that I had dyslexia when he mentioned that he preferred reading, but he didn’t judge me for it. He just said that he would have to read to me one of his favorite books sometime. I wouldn’t be able to read it on my own because it was written in old monster text anyways. The offer was so sweet. I knew I’d probably be taking him up on it.

              Eventually, Grayridge’s calls of stone and moat of suburban paradise opened up to the interstate. We drove for a little while before he took an exit that led to a small backroad. Curiosity made me remember my internal map of the Ridge cities and the smaller cities around them. I knew we had to be near Mt. Ebott because of the looming mountain in distance, but we were barely less than 2 hours away. It dawned on me that we were going to Ebott Lake once he parked the car in the empty parking spot that campers would use whenever it was warm enough to go camping.

              “Ooooohhh….” I said, accepting the paw he offered me as I got out of his truck, “A picnic on Ebott Lake hm?”

              “I should’ve known you’d figure it out once we got here.” Asgore chuckled, grabbing a basket out from the back of the truck, “My coworkers and I came by here for some small party after monsters were given rights. Hopefully this isn’t too common of an area to go on a date?”

              “Nope.” I wrapped my arm around one of his, “Most people don’t want to make the drive, so you still get points for being unique.”

              “I’m earning points now?” Asgore led me through the woods clearing a path with soft bursts of controlled fire magic.

              “Of course. Brownie points are an amazing way to score dates you know. This one time, I went out with a guy who was in the _negatives_ by the end of the date.” I make a ‘blech’ face at the memory.

              “How am I doing then?” Asgore tried his best to just sound curious, but I heard soft thread of worry in his voice.

              “ _Very_ well.” I winked at him, “Already in my top ten.” He visibly let out a puff of air in relief.

              The spot Asgore took me to was a small cliff that hung over the lake. Pristine blue waters reflected the beautiful image of Mt. Ebott looming in the distance. The vibrant, lively green trees surrounding us were unaffected by the temperature change because of the magic running through the ground. Some people said that bathing in Ebott Lake’s waters could cure illnesses or ease pain. Sitting in a small blanket overlooking the beautiful scene, it was easy to see why.

              “Ah…” I took a deep breath of the fresh air and smiled, “I forget that the rest of the world is green sometimes. The concrete jungle is easy to get lost in, but it’s nice to be in an actual forest for once.”

              “I like to come here alone when I can. It’s amazing spot to meditate.” Asgore sat down beside me after rolling up his sleeves. I spotted the familiar red tattoo on his arm, “Is something wrong?”

              “I was wondering what this was.”  I reached out and touched the dark red markings. They glowed under my touch, and I was shocked to see a dim red light flash on his back in response, “Huh?”

              “This is what allows me to summon my trident at will.” Asgore explained. He tilted his head back some as though to gesture at the hidden markings, “The ones of my back act as a sheath of sorts.”

              “You have tattoos on your back….” My mind went places it really shouldn’t go on the first date, “You’ll have to show me sometime. I’ve got one too by the way.” I pointed to the small little mark on my left ankle.

              “Hmm…a cat paw?” Asgore, “Why a cat paw?”

              “I thought it looked cute.” I shrugged, “I was 18 and somewhat free of my parents. What can I say?” The look on his face made me pout a little bit out of worry.

              “It does look good on you.” Asgore assured me, “In the Underground, tattoos typically serve some kind of magical purpose, so it’s still a bit odd to see that humans use them just for decoration.”

              “Woah, wait. So the markings on Undyne’s back are also magical?”

              “Where do you think all of her spears come from?” Asgore laughed, “Thin air?”

              “Yes!” I swatted his arm playfully, “I’m just a human you know.”

              “Fair enough.” Asgore stretched his legs out. I found myself marveling at his feet, “What?”

              “Nothing.” _Just wondering if that rumor about foot size indicating other things is true…I hope it is_. “Anyways, did you ever try out that soup recipe I sent you?”

              “I did…” Asgore said slowly.

              “What happened?” I sighed, “Did it not taste good?”

              “No. I burnt it.”

              ….

              I then proceeded to spend the next ten minutes teasing him for burning _soup_.

              Our conversation eventually turned to various topics. Most of them were mundane, typical first date things- well….what few of them we had left. All of our ‘tea times’ together meant that we had covered a lot of first date ground without realizing it. Still, nothing seemed clunky or awkward. Everything just…flowed smoothly. _Even if this doesn’t lead anywhere, my standards have been permanently risen for life._ Asgore was just so…. _Asgore_. I loved our first date more than anything in the world.

              On the way back, after an hour of just talking and relaxing in the afternoon sunlight, Asgore and I drove home with some of my favorite K-Pop bands blasting from my phone. He didn’t seem as into it as I was, but my silly attempts at dancing while wearing a seatbelt made him smile. Everything was great. I didn’t even really mind that Ilya had texted me to let me know that the delivery had been delayed.

              “Hey Asgore, do you mind dropping me off at Chez Newmore?” I asked after texting Ilya back, “I want to help Ilya with our delivery. It’s nothing big, but everything moves faster when more people work on it.”

              “I’ll be driving you home.” Asgore said firmly.

              “If that’ll make you feel better.” I sighed, leaning my body across the console some to rest my head against Asgore’s upper arm, “I’ll be putting you to work though.”

              “That’s no problem.” Asgore shrugged one of his shoulders, “I probably wouldn’t be able to not offer to help you if any heavy lifting is involved.”

              “Thank goodness for that. Ilya and I don’t even bench press at all.” My skinny arms really didn’t do well with lifting things- even after some upper body exercises.

              Grayridge was dim with the evening glow and still wet from the rain that had passed that morning. I was glad that none of the rain seemed to reach Ebott lake- talk about a total mood killer if it had reached it.

              “I’m going to go park my truck.” Asgore said.

              “Alright. I’ll go meet up with Ilya.” I unbuckled my seatbelt and paused. Deciding to be a little bit more daring, I turned around and pushed myself up enough to kiss Asgore’s cheek, “Thank you for doing this by the way.”

              “It’s no problem.” Asgore didn’t realize he had my pale pink lip gloss on his cheek….I wasn’t going to tell him either.

              I got out of the truck and made my way towards Chez Newmore hoping that Asgore would be able to find a spot that wasn’t too out of the way.

              “Ilya.” I called out as I rounded the corner, “I’m here. Sorry I’m a bit behind. We got stuck in traf…fic…” Ilya’s scarf was in the middle of the alley way, “Wh…ha..at?”

              A small trail of white powder led into Chez Newmore’s kitchens. The delivery wasn’t here yet, but the door was wide open. My kitchen had been decimated. It looked like a tornado tore through.

              That wasn’t what made me scream.

              What made me scream was the pile of dust- with my recognizable bright pink umbrella sitting on it- in the middle of it all.

              “IILLLLLYAAAA!


	15. After....

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I own nothing. Full disclaimer/links can be found in Ch1
> 
> and we're halfway there. I tried my best to not rush the mourning process, but there's only so many ways to describe grief without sounding redundant.

              Numb nothingness. Pained shock. Frantic denial.

              It was almost- no it was terrifying to have all of those different things warring in my mind, tearing me into tiny parts. Someone who trusted me, who had faith in my business, in my charities, was killed because I spoke too loudly. _Is this the kind of world we live in now? One where the innocent become casualties in what should be a bloodless conflict?_

              I don’t know how I ended up sitting in the front of my restaurant with Asgore sitting beside me, one of his strong arms wrapped tightly around my shoulders. The police officer trying her best to coax my story out had this sad look on her face that I wanted to tear off in a fit of rage. _Why does **she** look sad?! She’s not the one who’s going to have to tell his family that he died on the job because I have too big of a fucking mouth to just mind my own damn business. _

              “Miss Newmore?” The officer tried again.

              “I don’t think this will be going anywhere.” Asgore’s firm voice quickly silenced the police officers further questions, “Please, give her a few moments to collect herself.” The officer hesitated before nodding and leaving the two of us alone, “Olivia?” A warm paw gently cupped my face, “Olivia…please look at me.”

              Reluctantly, I raised my bloodshot eyes to look up at Asgore. His fur was damp from the rain, but I could tell that the wetter parts trailing beside his nose were tearstains. _Ilya was one of his people…._ That thought alone sent me into another fit of tears.

              “Olivia. Shhh…” Asgore tucked me close to his chest and ran one of his paws through my hair.

              “I-I’m so….so…so sorry...” I wailed against his chest. The fabric of his shirt ripped underneath the force of my nails, “I’m so sorry….this is all my fault.”

              “Olivia.” Asgore sighed, “It’s not your fault.”

              “I’m the one who antagonized them!” I struggled against his arms. The once comforting embrace now felt suffocating, wrong. _I got Ilya killed. I got him killed. I got one of the nicest people in Grayridge murdered. Oh god. How am I going to tell Heats? Grilby? Fuku? FUCKINGSHITDAMMIT!_

              “None of them ever displayed this level of wrongness before.” Asgore let me sit back. I rubbed at my face, crying like the pathetic child I felt like. Desperate for some control over my situation, I tried my best to stop sobbing, “We all thought the violent fanatics went down with Lucy last year.”

              “Obviously they didn’t.” I spat without meaning too, “It was one of the creeps. The ones who just hang around- I _know_ it. They’re the only ones sophisticated enough to do this. Oh Ilya….”

              “No one could have expected this Olivia.” Asgore pressed on gently, “Please, I beg of you. Do not blame yourself for this. If you must blame anyone, blame me. I failed to provide the protection I offered you.”

              “Asgore!” I snapped, my turmoil of emotions quickly turning to incensed fury, “This isn’t _your_ fault! It can’t be your fault. You aren’t the one who’s been vocally demonizing bitty fighting rings for the past four months. You aren’t the one who antagonized them directly. _I_ am. Quit trying to take the blame for everything for once- _please_. It’s driving me crazy.”

              Asgore sat statue still for a couple of minutes as I tried my best to right my appearance.

              _I just snapped at him….but Ilya….He didn’t deserve that. Great. I’m a total bitch._

              “Asgore-“ I turned to apologize to him.

              “It’s alright Olivia.” Asgore rested his forehead against mine before I could continue, “You don’t need to apologize.”

              “How did you know I was going to apologize?” I sniffled.

              “You’re far too kind to just bite off someone’s head.” Asgore nuzzled my cheek affectionately, “I’m so sorry this happened, but I don’t want you to tear yourself apart with what-ifs and maybes. I’ve lived that life….I refuse to let you suffer through it.”

              “Asgore….” My sniffles became more frequent again.

              “It’s alright.” Asgore pulled me back into a hug. This time I just cried quietly for about twenty minutes.

              “LIVI!”

              Papyrus’s voice had my dazed, snotty head rising from Asgore’s chest. Papyrus hurried past some rather flustered looking police officers with all of the bitties in tow.

              “mama!” Hiro hopped down to hug my neck as soon as he arrived. Harley teleported onto my shoulder and buried his face in my hair before I could react, “it’s not true! it can’t be! not ilya!”

              “Oh baby…” I rubbed his back, “It is true…”

              “Fucking shit….” Harley’s near soundless voice shook.

              “oLiViA…” Willoughby reached down at me. I stood up and picked him and Snooze up from a crying Papyrus, “I’m So SoRrY…i BrOuGhT tHiS tO uS.”

              “No Willoughby.” I whispered covering him and Snooze in kisses, “You didn’t.” I looked up at Papyrus. He dashed away his tears as quickly as he could, but more kept sliding down his face, “Oh come here Papyrus.”

              I was pulled into another tight hug. Snooze and Willoughby were awkwardly pinned between us- not that either of them seemed to care.

              “I CAN’T BELIEVE THAT SOMEONE WOULD DO THIS.” Papyrus whimpered softly into my hair, “WHY DOES THE WORLD NEED SUCH SENSELESS VIOLENCE?”

              “Because the bad guys are always looking for more entertainment.” I sighed, rubbing up and down his back comfortingly, “It’s okay Pap. Shhh…” I tried my best to comfort him even though I was ready to cry again myself. A warm, slightly shaking hand on my lower back grounded me some. I looked back and saw Asgore smiling at me gently. I managed to smile back.

              After calming down Papyrus, I sat back down with my emotionally exhausted bitties. The police officer came back and spoke to me about what happened. I told her about coming to help Ilya with a delivery that was supposed to be made today and finding the kitchen in the state it was in. I broke down crying again once I had to describe how I found Ilya’s remains, but I managed to push through the tears to finish it. Once she left to go converse with her fellow officers, I leaned against Asgore’s chest and just fell limp.

              I felt numb and raw at the same time. I always expected retaliation. The chances of them not lashing out against me had been slim to none to begin with. I just never expected them to target anyone _but_ me. Those sick bastards really went and stabbed me where it hurts: the people I care about.

              In the end, Asgore took Papyrus and I home where Sissy and Sans- with Greyson, Flowey, and their bitties of course- were waiting. Sans immediately began to comfort Papyrus. Sissy looked at Asgore and I with a critical eye. She met his gaze and the two seemed to have a mental conversation before Sissy ultimately took the bitties and tried her best to calm them down while Asgore escorted me to my bedroom to rest.

              “Here.” Asgore’s clumsy fingers tried their best to get my earrings out.

              “I’ve got it.” _Even my voice sounds numb._ I took out my earrings and let Asgore wash my face with a wet rag that he briefly left the room to get. After taking off the bracelet, unbraiding my hair, and taking my shoes off, I took my dress off- to Asgore’s shock- without a care in the world and promptly climbed into bed in just my strapless bra and lace thong. Burying myself deep in the covers, I took a few steadying breaths before peering out from under the blankets at Asgore. He was blushing bright red, “You can sit down you know.”

              Asgore quietly sat on the empty space of bed beside me. He sat with his legs hanging off the bed and his front facing me at a slight angle. A soft red blush was barely visibly in the dim light of my room.

              “How bad does it hurt right now?” Asgore asked brushing some of my hair away from my face.

              “Like I’ve had a spiked sledgehammer slammed into my chest.” I caught his wrist with my hand and brought it to my face to kiss the leathery center of his paw, “How about you? I know the safety of your people means the world to you.”

              “I feel as though I have failed despite knowing that there was no way for me to change his fate.” Asgore admitted, “It is impossible for a king or any ruler to be omniscient. That doesn’t make it feel any less painful however.”

              “I’m sorry.” I clutched his paw close.

              “I think we all are in this situation. An innocent man is dead because a group of fanatics cornered him like an animal.” Asgore’s voice dropped to that low growl that made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up, “They will be punished for what they have done to the fullest extent of the court of law.”

              “I’m glad to hear that you won’t be turning into a vigilante.” The vice grip worry had on my heart lost some of its power. My chest still hurt as bad as my head did however, “Asgore?”

              “Yes?”

              “Please stay here….if you can.”

              Asgore looked down at me with sharp eyes for a moment. The logical part of my brain recognized how vulnerable I was in that moment, but the optimistic part in my heart knew that Asgore wouldn’t take advantage of _anyone_ in this kind of situation.

              “Very well.” Asgore said. The bed shifted a little when he took off his shoes. I had to move over to let the large monster king have enough room to stretch out comfortably. His feet hung off the edge of the bed. I noticed that he made a point to stay on top of the covers.

              “Thank you.” I sighed in relief and buried my face into his chest.

              _How come what started as the best day of my life can be so easily turned into one of the worst?_

              I had begun to doze in and out of fitful sleep as Asgore quickly fell into a rumbling slumber. _He snores…_ The cute revelation brought some levity into my mood that hadn’t been there earlier.

              “Livvy?” Sissy whispered, leaning into the bedroom.

              “Yes?” I called back just as softly. Asgore didn’t stir. Sissy walked around to the foot of the bed with all of my bitties with her, “Oh.”

              “They wanted you.” Sissy’s sad eyes seemed to be unable to tell if they should brighten at the image of me cuddling with Asgore. _It’s a good thing she doesn’t know I’m practically naked underneath the blankets._

              “Could you bring them here?” I nodded down to where a large arm clamped down around my middle, “I can’t exactly move.”

              Sissy walked over to my side of the bed and let my bitties down. Hiro immediately crawled over my neck and buried himself into my chest. Snooze curled up beneath my chin, and Harley settled down against my back. Willoughby- surprisingly- curled up in my hair instead of choosing a location further away from Harley.

              “How’s Papyrus?” I questioned.

              “Sans is reading him a bedtime story right now.” Sissy patted my head affectionately, “Both of you are really shaken up. Sans will be staying the night while I try to get Chez Newmore’s kitchen fixed and look after Greyson.”

              “Sissy I can-“

              “Rest. You can rest.” Sissy leaned down and kissed the top of my head like she used to when I was crying over my dead pets when I was younger, “Leave the heavy lifting up to me for a little while okay? You need to recover baby boo.”

              “….okay.” I sighed.

              “Good.” Sissy smiled at me, “Get some sleep.”

              I did get some sleep.  I got a lot of it over the next few days while Payrus, the bitties, and I worked through our grief. Grillby, Fuku, and Heats had been horrified at the news, but the police claimed that they had some leads they were following. I didn’t want an innocent person to go to jail obviously. I also didn’t want the piece of shit who did this to Ilya to be walking through Grayridge either.

              “LIVI?” Payrus knocked on my door.

              “Come in.” I tied my hair up into my usual work bun. The restaurant had been closed for the past few days while the kitchens were being repaired.

              Papyrus entered my room with Harley and Snooze. Hiro and Willoughby were sitting on my dresser watching me do my hair.

              “DO YOU THINK WE’RE READY TO OPEN AGAIN SO SOON?” Papyrus stood beside me.

              The mirror reflected back at me two young adults trying their best to be brave after the ground they stood on had been knocked out from under them with one single, vicious blow. Both of us wanted to see the best in people, but at that moment, I doubted either of us could see anything but the worst in everyone- even ourselves. Even after days of grieving for our friend, we both still looked gaunt and haunted by the ‘maybes’.

              _We can’t keep going on like this. Ilya…Ilya wouldn’t want this._

              My mind flashed back to the independent little fire monster, and my resolve set itself further in my chest. I would open Chez Newmore despite the odds. I wouldn’t let them win- for Ilya’s sake.

              “We won’t ever be ready Pap.” I stood up straighter using every single confidence tactic Nadia and Sissy had taught me over the years, “We can only be sure. I’m sure that this is the right thing to do. We can’t back down now. We can’t let them think that their vile tactics will work.”

              “…YOU’RE RIGHT.” Papyrus took a deep breath and stood up straighter, “THE GREAT PAPYRUS SHOULD NOT BE DOUBTING THE JUDGEMENT OF HIS BEST HUMAN FRIEND.”

              “We’ll beat them with our stubbornness.” I nodded at myself in the mirror.

              “Yeah.” Harley’s voice was still a bit hoarse from his time mourning our coworker, “Fuck those assholes.”

              “m!” Hiro rubbed some final tears away, “we’re going to put ilya’s friday special on the menu permanently now right?”

              “Forever and always.” It would be the tribute that would never go out.

              “…do you think anyone will show up for work?” Snooze questioned, quiet and unsure. It was odd to see the usually placid bitty so put off.

              “FeAr CaN dRiVe AwAy PeOpLe…” Willoughby added.

              “They might. They might not. I won’t force them to come. I mean….we obviously can’t guarantee their safety.” Even with the increased police presence assigned to our area, we would still have our vulnerable spots. I wouldn’t blame them if they didn’t show up for work, “We’ll just have to do the best we can with what we get.”

              “someone will come.” Hiro said confidently, “i refuse to believe that our stalwart comrades will back out completely.”

              “SOME DO HAVE FAMILIES OF THEIR OWN…” Papyrus hesitated.

              “Let’s go find out?” I offered Papyrus my arm. He linked his with mine.

              Our walk to Chez Newmore- normally a funny, witty walk that made more than a few people glare at us because of our silly antics- didn’t have any of the usual levity to it. We powered through the early Grayridge crowds to our home away from home. A couple of people recognized us and stared at us while whispering to themselves. I could already tell this was going to add to the media shit storm. Gritting my teeth and cradling the new menus under one arm, I kept my head up high and walked to my restaurant.

              Sissy had done a good job of having the place fixed up and broken equipment replaced. It looked like new, but so, so empty.

              “We’d better start prep.” I sat the bitties down, “Willoughby? Do you want to go rest in the office? You shouldn’t be working yourself so hard. You’re due in a couple of weeks.” Which meant that he would be giving birth sooner than that more than likely.

              “i WaNt To HeLp…If I cAn.” Willoughby looked around in thought.

              “We can all pitch in.” Harley patted his back. Willoughby flinched some, but he didn’t completely recoil, “There’s a lot of work to do after all.”

              We all got started on the work.

              I watched the clock with a sinking heart.

              _I can’t blame them. I **can’t**. Most of them have families to look after._

              “Chef?”

              I almost dropped the bowl I was carrying.

              I turned to find my entire staff looking at me as they took off their winter coats and scarves and hats.

              “Sorry we’re late.” Damon shook some frost from his hair, “We got ambushed by some news reporters on our way here.”

              “Insensitive bastards.” Rosie sniffled, “Just gotta come bug us on the day we start working again.”

              “They always need a new story.” Con said darkly.

              “You almost gave one to them.” Avirai scolded him, “You can’t just punch a journalist!”

              “You should’ve let him.” Vipiria’s voice had the low hiss that only came out when she was annoyed, “It might’ve taught that little snot a lesson he needs to learn.”

              “Enough.” Irene clapped her hands together, “We open soon. Chef?....Chef?”

              My staff looked at my tear covered face in concern. I rubbed them away furiously.

              “I’m just glad that you guys all came back.” I said.

              “Like I’m going to abandon you now.” Damon swatted the back of my head, “Unless you’ve forgotten, all of us are aware of the dangers that come with working for a Newmore sister.”

              “I won’t be run off by this shit.” Rosie crossed her arms and puffed up slightly, “We’ll show those bastards.”

              “I heard that someone might be able to give an eye witness testimony and identify the murderer.” Vipiria added.

              “Good.” I said darkly.

              “AH! EVERYONE!” Papyrus came back to the kitchen from the front where he was replacing the old menus with the new ones, “YOU CAME!”

              “Yup.” Con gave him a thumbs up and a sad smile, “You’re gonna be stuck with us you know.”

              “I’M SO HAPPY!” Papyrus pulled Con and Damon into a crushing hug.

              “Everyone….” Irene sighed and looked at me, “Chef?”

              “Alright.” I said getting everyone’s attention with the single word, “It’s time to get to work- for Ilya.”

              “For Ilya.” They chorused back at me.

              I was blessed to have them as my staff. I truly was.

              “Guys.” I said before everyone broke off, “I just want you to know that I love all of you.”

              They just smiled back and me and said some variation of ‘I do too’ before getting down to work.

              I loved my job.

              I loved the people I worked with.

              _Ilya._

_I’m sorry you can’t be here with the rest of us, but I’ll never forget you._

              The small flaming butterfly I had added next to the cat’s paw on my ankle during our closing period was proof enough of that.


	16. Lace

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I own nothing. Full disclaimer/links can be found in Ch1
> 
> Lace is born *confetti* but obviously things are never that simple in my story!  
> I've also had to officially start up a second word document for this story (Patchwork ended up taking up 6 of the things). Anyways, I'm going to post this then go to bed. It's late where I am, but I wanted to get this up.

              “Uh hey…” Heats awkwardly tried to get my attention, “Erm…where is that spice again?”

              “Up….” I glared at the spice, “Where you can’t reach it.” I quickly stood up on my tiptoes and got it for him, “I’ll make sure we put things where you can reach them from now on.”

              “Thanks Ol-…er…Chef.” He nodded stiffly before turning his attention back to work.

              After Ilya’s funeral, Heats approached me about filling in for Ilya. He wasn’t a sous chef like his half-brother, but he did have experience as a line cook. Thus, Papyrus became my official sous chef- he had only kind of been the third in command before that point- while Heats filled in Papyrus’s position as a line cook. The kitchen still wasn’t a light-hearted as it used to be, but we were slowly recovering.

              “It’s no problem.” I returned my focus back to my work. There wasn’t much more I could say to him. All of my apologizes had been used at the funeral. It would be in poor taste to keep reminding him that his half-brother had died, “We look out for each other back here.”

              Heats paused and timidly shot me a wan smile.

              Harley came over to assist me after Heats moved a little further away to focus on another task.

              “How’s he doing?” Harley asked, handing me the knife I needed.

              “As well as can be expected.” I sighed.

              “Mmmm…” Harley frowned, “I still can’t believe that guy fled the city.”

              “They’re looking for him.” I had also offered up a cash prize to anyone who provided the police the information they needed to bring him in, “He’ll be facing the consequences soon enough.”

              “Sometimes I hate how slow the justice system is.” Harley grumbled.

              “It’s understandable though. False convictions ruin lives.” I pointed out. _I do want that guy to burn in the depths of hell though…._

              “Still…that guy is out there…and….Ilya isn’t in here. It’s wrong.” Harley growled under his breath, “It’s just _so_ wrong.”

              “I know how you feel sweetie.” I promised him.

              Harley and I began to work within the flow of the kitchen with no problems. Obviously, things were a bit clumsy and timing was a bit off because Heats was back there with us instead of Ilya. None of us got angry with him though. The food he was helping make was very popular with the customers.

              “LIVI! OLIVIA!” Papyrus burst out of my office where he should’ve been eating lunch.

              “Papyrus?” I turned my head to him. Harley teleported onto my shoulder protectively, “What’s wrong.”

              “WILLOUGHBY’S GONE INTO LABOR!” Papyrus pointed back to my office.

              “Oh crud. Pap, cover for me. Hiro, Snooze, stay here and help him out.” I ordered the two sans-type bitties who were focusing on helping Heats get adjusted to everything, “Harley, you’re coming with me okay?”

              “Gotcha.” Harley nodded, hunkering down on my shoulder.

              “YOU SHOULD HURRY LIVI.” Papyrus quickly stepped in to fill my place.

              “On it.” I rushed into my office to get Willoughby

              Willoughby was curled into a ball of pain on my desk. He yelped in agony when I scooped him up, clutching at his stomach protectively.

              “Yo dude.” Harley slid down my arm and placed a hand on his forehead, “Crap. Crap. Man I wish we had Snuggle right now.”

              “Me too.” I agreed, running out of Chez Newmore without my coat, “Me too.”

              Harley tried his best to gently weave healing magic into Poppy’s pained frame, but healing had never been a specialty of his.

              “Gah…I’m sorry.” Harley had wrapped his legs around my waist to keep trying to comfort Willoughby without falling off of my arm, “I’m sorry I can’t do more. Fuck. Just hang on Willoughby. Hang on.”

              “tRyInG…” Willoughby groaned through gritted teeth, “iT’s MoRe PaInFuL tHaN iT lOoKs.”

              “Shit....can you run any faster?” Harley begged.

              “I’m already practically knocking people down Harley.”

              “Still….”

              “Fine.” I increased the speed, thanking my lucky stars that I jogged to stay healthy, “Willoughby, talk to me sweetie.”

              “HuRtS…a LoT…” Willoughby’s hand clung to Harley’s arm in a painful death grip that made Harley wince silently, “sTaRs….”

              “Velour! Karli!” I skidded into the CC panting like a dehydrated dog and covered in sweat. A couple of people looking at the bitty pens looked at me like I was a crazy woman. I probably looked the part with my wild hair and terrified expression, “Lace is coming. Now.”

              “Give him here.” Karli took Willoughby from my hands, “He’s not that far along yet. Anton! Come take Miss Newmore to the bitty waiting room in the back while I take Willoughby to Velour!”

              “Yes ma’am.” A short, porcupine monster guided me into the back resting room for recovering bitties. Nobody was there, “Please wait here.”

              “How long do you thing this’ll take?” Harley questioned.

              “It could be anywhere from 30 minutes to three hours…maybe longer.” Anton rubbed the side of his nose, “We never know with these kinds of things.”

              “We’ll wait.” I put Harley onto my lap and rubbed his head soothingly, “I just need to call Papyrus and let him know.”

              Papyrus had- of course- been more than willing to call in one of our back-ups and cover for me for the rest of the day. Our bitties were very important to us after all. I felt terrible about dumping all of the work on him, but Willoughby needed someone to be with him.

              “Do you think he’s okay?” Harley asked me around the hour mark.

              “Everything has looked okay before…besides the premature thing.” I bit my tongue some to regain focus.

              “I’m worried…I mean…you know what Tinsel looked like, and _he_ had two parents who loved each other more than anything. What if Lace…” Harley couldn’t finish the sentence.

              “Stop it Harley.” I flicked the back of his head, “It won’t turn out like that. It won’t.”

              _Oh dear god I hope it won’t._

              Harley and I waited for another hour. The silence, the waiting started to drive us a little bit crazy, so we began to play chess on my phone to pass the time. We couldn’t ask anyone questions about what was going on. We didn’t even get updates.

              “Miss Newmore?” Karli entered the recovery room with an unconscious Willoughby cradled in a small plastic bed. Beside her, Velour carried a magical orb holding a small figure, “We’re sorry that this took so long…”

              “How are they?” I stood up and followed the two to the table.

              “Willoughby is fine- exhausted though.” Karli smiled at me, “He got through with very little pain medication which was good for Lace.”

              “And Lace?” Harley asked, staring at the orb Velour had covered in her hands.

              “He’s alive….” Velour sighed and placed the orb on the table to hover.

              I stifled a gasp with one of my hands.

              “Is this…what happens when….”  I couldn’t finish the sentence.

              “It does.” Karli nodded.

              “Willoughby’s magic didn’t want to blend with the other bitty’s.” Velour looked down on the malformed creature with eyes of pity, “He’s…probably going to be blind, and we doubt that any of his bones will ever recover.”

              “Oh fucking stars.” Harley looked away from the sight, “Shit.”

              Lace was a tiny, long baby.  His left fibula never formed leaving his leg gimp. One of his hands didn’t form either, leaving his arm empty from the carpal bones down. He was missing two ribs- one on each side of his sternum in different locations. His right eye that permanently hung slightly open was dry and hollow. His left eye never formed at all leaving a terrifying black hole in his head that had spider webs of cracks forming. One crack in particular resembled a jagged tear line. His teeth were chipped and cracked in various places leaving his smile permanently broken. His right hand- the one he actually had- had fingers of varying damage. He didn’t have a pinky finger at all. His ring and index finger were missing their distal bones, and his middle finger was missing from the proximal bone up. He at least had a complete thumb. His spine was covered in cracks and chips that were sure to pain him for the rest of his life.

              “Oh my god.” I brushed my fingers against the orb. I noticed that one of his nasal cavities wasn’t formed properly either, “Maybe we should’ve named you miracle…”

              “We ended up doing a lot of expe- studies with bitties earlier this year.” Velour rested a paw on my shoulder, “We can help his life go a little bit easier because we know how to treat some of these problems. A permanent back brace around his spine should help with the pain, and we can create substitute ribs and fibula for him once he finishes growing. We can’t repair the cracks; however, we have some ointment that can help with the pain.”

              “Thank you.” I said.

              “We’ll leave you guys alone with these two.” Karli gestured at Velour, “Please yell if anything goes south. Willoughby should wake up naturally.”

              With that, Velour and Karli left us to tend to other bitties and human owners. Harley and I spoke quietly about the situation for a couple of minutes when…

              “Jeez.” Harley placed his hands on the orb and stared at the disfigured babe, “Poor kid…”

              “It was going to be bad…we knew that.” _Just not **this** bad. Oh…some of his formed ribs are cracked too._

              “..mMmMmM…” Willoughby’s tired voice cut through any further conversation Harley and I would’ve had.

              “Willoughby?” Harley approached the side of his bed cautiously. The Lil’ Bro had already crossed some boundaries with the poppy on the way here, so he appeared to be trying to make things as comfortable as possible for the tired bitty, “Hey man, can you hear me?”

              “Willoughby?” I rubbed the side of his face affectionately. One of his weary hands came up to touch my hand. The other blindly reached out. Harley stepped closer to see what was going on when Willoughby had his hand wrapped around his arm.

              “Uhhh…” Harley let the poppy pull him close.

              “tHaNk YoU…” Willoughby wheezed, “yOu…NeVeR mEnTiOnEd yOu CoUlD hEaL.”

              “It’s…not my best skill.” Harley stared down at where Willoughby was willingly touching him. He gave me a ‘what kind of drugs did they give him’ look before looking back down at Willoughby, “I’m sorry I couldn’t do more.”

              “YoU dId EnOuGh…” Willoughby coughed a bit. His hands went down to his now flat stomach, “LaCe? wHeRe’S mY bAbY?”

              “He’s currently in a stabilized orb.” Harley explained before I could come up with something to say to keep Willoughby calm. Willoughby tensed and looked at the two of us in horror, “He’s _fine_ Willoughby. He was just…malformed coming out- like we knew he’d be. The disfigurement was worse than we expected though, so they have him in an orb to help bolster his immune system.”

              “hE’S oKaY?” Willoughby’s voice cracked.

              “Yes.” I nodded, brushing away some of his light purple tears, “He’s okay. He’s alive.”

              “ThAnK tHe StArS…” Willoughby sniffled, “tHaNk ThE sTaRs…”

              It was late in the afternoon when Velour returned and took Lace out of the orb. The small bitty baby remained quiet as Velour began her check-up. He didn’t kick up a fuss or cry endlessly. He just silently let her poke and prod him with metal instruments with a blank look on his face.

              “Willoughby?” Velour approached us with the baby, “Do you want to hold him?”

              “pLeAsE?” Willoughby’s weak arms stretched out to receive his child. He cradled his son carefully with shaking arms, hands tracing the malformed areas of his son lovingly, “Oh LaCe…”

              “We’re already working on a small back brace for him to wear.” Velour told us, “It should be done in about 45 minutes. Are you returning to work today?”

              “Nope. Papyrus told me to take Willoughby and Lace straight home after we were done here.” I shook my head and smiled fondly, “He doesn’t want Willoughby to overdo it.”

              “Thank the stars.” Velour sighed in relief, “Good. Please wait here a little longer.”

              “You got it.” I turned my gaze back to Lace and Willoughby as Velour left the room.

              “mY sOn, My SoN…” Willoughby rested his forehead against Lace’s, “… _hIs_ SoN, bUt…MiNe NoW…”

              “And he always will be yours.” Harley reached out and rubbed his thumb against Lace’s cheek, “I’ll throttle anybody that tries to take him away from you.”

              “…” Willoughby looked up at Harley, fresh tears in his eyes, “yOu…YoU aReN’t a BaD lIl’ bRo…”

              “I try not to be for you pal.” Harley smiled despite Willoughby not being able to see.

              _This is the start of something new. That’s for sure._

              “OlIvIa?”

              “Yes Willoughby?” I leant down to rest my chest against the table and keep my face somewhat level with my bitties.

              “tHaNk YoU…fOr SaViNg Us.” Willoughby blinked back his tears as best he could.

              “Always.” I kissed the top of his head, “I would never leave a bitty in a lurch. That would just be…horrible.” I shuddered at the very idea.

              We were eventually released to go home after Lace was outfitted with a brace that wrapped around his spine, holding the fraying segments of bone together and strengthening the magic between them at the same time. Karli also had Lace swaddled up in a nice onesie and blanket before opening the door for us. I had a bag of bitty baby supplies that hung heavily over one of my shoulders, but I was going to make damn sure that Lace would have everything he could ever need- no matter how heavy the bag of supplies was.

              Lace was quiet the entire walk home. Velour had explained to us- with sad eyes- that Lace would probably end up mute or with a _very_ broken voice. That had saddened Willoughby, who felt that the trauma was his fault. Velour made sure to stress that it was no fault of his given the situation.

              “hOmE.” Willoughby said after smelling the familiar air freshener that Papyrus used. He looked down at the baby in his arms, “tHiS iS hOmE.”

              “Let’s see….” I pursed my lips, “Where do you want to set up his stuff Willoughby? It probably needs to be in either my room or Papyrus’s room.”

              “YoUrS…pLeAsE.” Willoughby said after a few moments of thought, “i SlEeP iN tHeRe ThE mOsT.”

              “Valid point.” My stomach gurgled in protest at not eating anything for lunch, “Ah…well…That’s embarrassing.”

              “Mom.” Harley laughed, “You go set up with Willoughby. I’ll go make us all something to eat okay?”

              “Thanks.” I blushed bright red.

              “No problem.” Harley teleported off of my shoulder onto the ground. He headed into the kitchen without looking back.

              “Let’s go find somewhere to put all of this bitty baby stuff.” I told Willoughby.

              It took me a little while to decide on a place for the baby. I wanted him to be close by in case he needed something urgently, but I also didn’t want to put him in too much danger. In the end, Willoughby decided that he would sleep on my far pillow with his son since Lace probably couldn’t make a noise loud enough to get our attention if he needed help. Lace would otherwise be in his father’s arms or in the small baby cot on the nightstand right next to the stack of clothes and blankets I meticulously created.

              “There we go.” I took a step back and looked at my handy work.

              “iS eVeRyThInG sEt Up?” Willoughby asked, carefully navigating the rough terrain of my messy bed to find my nightstand.

              “Yes.” Willoughby’s soft smile made me feel very good.

              Willoughby, Harley, and I were eating when I got a text from Asgore, who I had been texting on and off the past few says. We hadn’t gone on another date because of the chaos that followed our first one, but we hadn’t given up on the idea of going on another one.

              **Asgore:** Papyrus told me that Willoughby gave birth?

              **Olivia:** He did :) It felt like it took forever, but Lace is now part of the family.

              **Asgore:** Is the child alright?

              **Olivia:** Malformed and disfigured :( Otherwise healthy at least.

              **Asgore:** Small blessings are often the most valuable.

 **Olivia:** True.

              **Olivia:** You definitely need to meet the little guy sometime thought.

              **Asgore:** Of course. I cannot wait. Tell Willoughby that I wish him well.

              _Careful brain. You’re starting to go to very fluffy places._ I tried my best to ignore the light fluttery feeling in my chest as I relayed Asgore’s message to my bitty. _Asgore really is too sweet for his own good sometimes. Honestly….._

              The quiet calm that ruled the apartment for the rest of the time it was just Harley, Willoughby, and I was thoroughly beaten away by the vibrant entrance of Hiro and Papyrus, who had to carry a passed out Snooze. Cue tons of Papyrus and Hiro trying their best to smother Lace in affection while Snooze stealthily snuck the baby away from them while they were distracted.

              “they’re loud.” Snooze apologized to the baby, “i hope you can forgive them.”

              Willoughby actually laughed at that.


	17. Birthday

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I own nothing. Full disclaimer/links can be found in Ch1
> 
> Sorry I didn't update yesterday. I was suffering from writer's burnout after doubling my usual writing workload Wednesday, but I want to get you guys to Ch20 as a kind of Christmas present since I'll more than likely not update Dec 24-26....I did count the chapters though, and it will kind of...end...on a...erm...cliffhanger *hides behind table* Sorry! It's just the way it counted out I'm afraid. If I do have spare time in my hiatus, I'll add more chapters, but the holidays is a chaotic time for me at best. Again, I'm sorry.

              “Livvy.” Sissy’s voice had that commanding tone that haunted my teenage dreams during my rebellious phase, “You _need_ to do something for your birthday. I mean it.”

              “I think I’m getting to old for parties….” I picked drummed my fingers against my calf. Moonlight poured in from my open window and made Willoughby and Lace look even paler than normal. Keeping my voice low, I continued, “After everything that’s happened….I just….well…”

              “That’s why you need to go.” Sissy insisted, “You need a break. I’m serious baby boo. You’re going to end up giving yourself and ulcer at this rate. Why not see if Asgore can take time off and go out with him?”

              “Sissy…” I sighed, reaching out to shift Harley into a more comfortable position on my lap, “He’s probably really busy.”

              “Hmph…”

              _Now I’ve gone and made her cranky…._

              I sat patiently waiting for Sissy to speak again. When I was younger, this silence usually indicated disappointment and annoyance spawned by her own youth and inexperience, but it turned into more ‘you’re an adult now’ aggravation as I grew older. Sissy _did_ love me. She was just awkward at combining being a sister and being a mother now that I was an adult. Raising me while growing up put a lot of weight on her shoulders that she’s never really been able to shake off. I knew it was ridiculous to feel guilty about it since I couldn’t exactly control the fact I had been born, but sometimes I did feel like I just added more problems to her life instead of taking some away.

              _What a way to express your gratitude Olivia. Ignore your sister’s requests for you to take better care of yourself because that’s the mature, responsible thing to do. No. You don’t sound like a child at all. Dammit._

              “He’s free.” Sissy suddenly said, shocking me enough that I jumped a little bit. Harley stirred, so I quickly traced up and down his spine to lull him back to sleep.

              “What?” I managed to get the word out before it was lost in the word salad that my brain had become.

              “Asgore is free.” Sissy said simply, “I just texted him. I have his number too you know. He’s worried about you too Livvy. We are all. Hell, Papyrus has called Sans five times over the past three days for advice on how to help you. I know losing someone close sucks-“ My mind went to Leo’s parents, who had helped Sissy whenever they could when she and Leo were growing up, “-but you can’t keep letting this funk drag you down.”

              “I haven’t been.” I protested. _I’ve been trying my best to hide it…how has everyone been noticing?_

              “You have been. I can hear it in your voice.” Ah, there was the ‘don’t argue with me little miss’ voice that demanded obedience without being rude, “You’re running yourself ragged trying to prove to everyone how you’re moving on from having one of your coworkers killed in your restaurant, and quite frankly, you’re stretching yourself too thin. Livvy, you’re only human. Humans get sad, angry, miserable. It’s part of life. Taking some time to reflect on the good things and to accept the bad things is necessary too. Thus, I swear to god, if you show up at work on your birthday, I _will burn the building to the ground._ Understand?” The sweet way she said “understand”- like a mother asking her child if everything was clear- almost made me laugh considering she was threatening to burn down my restaurant two breaths earlier.

              “I can’t just keep shoving my responsibility on Papyrus.” I insisted.

              “Pap will probably literally jump for joy if you ask for a day off.” Sissy shot that down quick enough.

              “Fine.” I relented, “Sometimes I can’t tell if you’re my sister or my bully.”

              “Quit your pouting.” _How does she know I’m pouting for pete’s sake?_ “And I’m a mixture of both. Someone has to keep you in line after all.”

              “Oh, so I’m the problem child now.” I grumbled, laying back down and bringing Harley up with me, “Thanks Sissy.”

              “I love you baby boo.”

              “I love you too.” I couldn’t keep acting cranky with her. Not when she was trying so hard to cheer me up and make me feel better, “I’ll go out with Asgore….and…you’re surprisingly chill about me going on a date with him.”

              “I’ve already told him how he’d be castrated and skinned alive if he fucked up.” Women should not be able to sound that normal and creepy at the same time, “I’m not worried.”

              “You threatened him?” I accidentally slipped out of my whisper and startled Lace. The little bitty baby blinked up at me with his one somewhat good eye, “Sorry sweetie.” I handed the little guy my finger and giggle once he began to gnaw on it some. The sharp points to his teeth hurt a little, but Velour said that the chewing helped him work his jaw open easier- which had been born a little too tight.

              “Of course I threatened him. I always threaten the people you get involved with.” Sissy scoffed, “I was actually nicer this time around since I actually like the guy.”

              “Your standards for nice scare me sometimes.” I heard Greyson begin to cry in the background, “Got to go?”

              “Yup.” Sissy groaned, “See you. Love you.”

              “Love you too.” I hung up the phone and tossed it onto my night stand. Settling down for the night, I let Lace continue to nibble on my finger, “Big siblings are both blessings and curses buddy.” I kissed the top of his head, “I guess you’ll learn that soon enough living with Hiro and Snooze.”

              Lace just looked back at me blankly.

              Papyrus did jump for joy and pull me into a bone crushing hug when I asked to take my birthday off. He spun me around a little bit too. I refused to just leave him with the restaurant and five bitties to look after though, so I asked Asgore if it was okay to bring Willoughby and Lace along since they were the deadweights of our little bitty clan. He didn’t mind.

              “HAPPY BIRTHDAY MY HUMAN FRIEND!” Papyrus burst into my room on my birthday morning. I counted my lucky stars that I had already gotten dressed. Asgore- wanting to surprise me as usual- only hinted that I might want to wear walking shoes, so I went for a nice pair of jeans and simple blouse instead of something dressier, “I HOPE THAT YOU HAVE A MARVELOUS DAY TODAY!”

              “Thank you Papyrus.” I let him ruffle my hair that I had just managed to untangle.

              “mama!” Hiro ran into the room dragging a piece of paper behind him. Snooze actually sat on the paper, getting a free ride from the excited baby blue, “happy birthday!”

              Hiro tugged the paper- that I then recognized to be a card of some kind- hard enough to dislodge Snooze and hand it to me. The card was a simple little thing drawn in crayon that had the typical ‘Happy Birthday’ on the front along with a drawing of the bitties, Papyrus, and I. The inside had little things from each of the bitties and Papyrus. From the looks of it, Harley had written down what Willoughby had wanted to say for him since the poppy couldn’t exactly write. The writing was messy enough that even without the dyslexia screwing everything up, I might not have been able to read it.

              “Aww….” I lovingly stroked the card and beamed at Hiro, “Thank you! This is so precious.”

              “I AM GLAD YOU LIKE IT.” Papyrus preened, “WE WORKED VERY HARD ON IT!”

              “Seriously.” Harley snorted, “These guys went through about thirty pieces of paper to get it just right.”

              “we weren’t going to mention that.” Snooze’s flat look would probably have killed Harley if it could.

              “Honesty is the best thing in the world isn’t it?” Harley grinned, putting his arms behind his head and grinning. Snooze looked ready to kick him in the pelvis.

              With Papyrus and the bitties making a huge fuss over me enjoying my ‘amazing, wonderful day of birth’, I finished getting ready for my outing with Asgore. Willoughby and Lace had gotten ready with some help from Hiro, so the three of us finished dressing around the same time. Papyrus went off to go call someone while Harley took Hiro and Snooze to get ready for their day at Chez Newmore.

              “oLiViA?” Willoughby gently rocked a dozing Lace.

              “Yes?” I slid my hands under him and picked him up. Cradling him and Lace close, I went to the living room to wait for Asgore.

              “WhAt’S a BiRtHdAy?”

              _….Oh… **OH**_

              “Someone’s birthday is the day they were born.” I explained, “Mine is November 7th, so we’re going to celebrate a little bit since I lived another year.”

              “iT’s A cElEbRaTiOn?” Willoughby looked up at me, and I was glad to see that he had become more curious after his therapy sessions with Toriel.

              “Yes. That’s why everyone said ‘Happy Birthday’ or the like to me this morning. I’m 26 now.” I explained.

              “OhH…hApPy BiRtHdAy?” Willoughby paused, “WaS tHiS wHaT tHaT cArD wAs FoR?”

              “Yes.” I nodded.

              “dOeS lAcE hAvE a BiRtHdAy?”

              “Mmhmm… November 3rd.” Thankfully, bitties started off with extremely high immune systems as infants because of the unique stabilization orbs they were placed into after being born. Over time, the effect would wear off, but the process was slow enough to make it easier for bitty baby immune systems to slowly adapt and grown on their own, “Though, I guess since bitties age rapidly, we’ll just have to have a little party for him in December.”

              “We CaN?” Willoughby sounded so hopeful, like I was offering him the Hope Diamond or something of equal value.

              “Of course silly.” I giggled and nuzzled his head. He and Lace had brought equal parts trouble, sadness, and happiness into my life, but it was worth it. _No wonder Sissy has a soft spot for troubled bitties._

              Suddenly, a crack appeared in my living room. The reality warped around the line, distorting into jagged colors and blurs. Sans stepped out of it with a lazy yawn. He wasn’t even really dressed, but he still smiled at him and waved.

              “sup?...oh, right. happy birthday.” He said nonchalantly.

              “Um…thanks?” My confused expression made him laugh.

              “you’re going somewhere relatively far away, so asgore asked me to teleport you guys instead of making you drive there.” Sans explained, “so, i’m your ride.”

              “Oh!” I stood up, “Thank you.”

              “no problem.” Sans shrugged, “you’re newmore’s baby sister after all.”

              I resented being called her ‘baby’ sister, but he was doing Asgore and I a favor. Thus, I gritted my teeth and said some quick good-byes to Papyrus and the bitties. Teleportation felt really weird, and I didn’t really like it. _How can Sissy stand that? Gah. I’d rather the long car ride._

              “Take your time. Teleporting is a bit harder on humans.” Sans patted my back. I was bent over some, clutching Willoughby and Lace to my chest.

              “I didn’t realize.” I retorted dryly. Once my head quit spinning like crazy, I stood up and my jaw dropped. A magnificent cavern with bioluminescent veins in the walls surrounded us, “Oh my god.”

              “Welcome to the former barrier cave.” Asgore walked up to me, “This is one of the few ways to get into the Underground.” Asgore turned his attention away from me to look at Sans, “Thank you.”

              “eh. i did it for newmore.” Distortion appeared behind Sans, “You cats have fun- not too much fun though. Olivia’s Sissy will kill you if you do.”

              “Sans.” I whined.

              “Duly noted.” Asgore nodded his head politely. Sans teleported away before I could chew him out.

              “If I want to fuck a goatman I will thank you!” I yelled aloud. Huffing out an annoyed breath, I straightened up and sighed, “Jeeeezzz….I’m not 16 anymore. Sissy does remember chasing the guy who took my virginity around Grayridge for three hours doesn’t she?...wait. She probably doesn’t.” I turned to face Asgore, “Sorry if Sissy’s been bother- Asgo?” I stood up on my tiptoes to try and meet his gaze. He was bright red, “Are you okay?”

              “yOu WeRe VeRy BlUnT.” Willoughby pointed out.

              “It’s the truth though.” I blinked in confusion. Still, I needed to apologize if I had made Asgore uncomfortable, “Sorry if that was a little too fast Asgore.”

              “It’s fine.” Asgore cleared his throat and managed to pull back on his kingly mask to hide the dorky exterior that hid beneath, “I just wasn’t expecting to hear that. Anyways,” Asgore looked down at Lace, who was chewing on Willoughby’s scarf, “He must be Lace?”

              “Yup.” I held my pair of bitties up higher, “Only 4 days old and he wants to chew on everything.”

              “Bitties do age faster at first.” Asgore patted the top of Lace’s head gently with one finger, “I heard that it was quite the struggle from Velour, Willoughby. I commend you for your bravery.”

              “tHaNk YoU.” Willoughby blushed a little bit himself.

              Asgore waited until I could walk properly after my first time teleporting. Watching me stumble around like a baby deer trying to learn to walk must’ve endeared me to him if the small teasing smile on his face was a reliable indicator. The king explained that he was supervising an adaptation of the Underground to act as a live in museum of sorts- mixing tourism with history to entertain and educate those on the surface. They had decided to start by working from the former ruins to New Home, so Asgore could still show me around the parts of the Underground that were closer to the surface without getting in anyone’s way.

              “This was where you lived?” I looked around the castle in awe, “It’s beautiful Asgore.”

              “It was a wedding gift from Toriel’s family. Her father was an architect.” Asgore mostly seemed interested in his field of buttercups, “Sadly, he passed before he ever saw his daughter walk it’s halls- illness took him.” He answered before I could even ask the question.

              “I see.” Looking around and out some of the windows to the beautiful expanse of the Underground below, I slowly began to realize something. It took one look up at the rock covered ceiling of the Underground for me to realize why I felt so uneasy. _This place had been their prison for centuries. No real rain or sunlight or snow or hail. Just magically generated replicas of what they had seen in the past._ The familiar sensation of angered sadness pooled in my chest, “I’m sorry you were all trapped down here for so long.”

              “You weren’t even born when it began.” Asgore paused, “ _I_ wasn’t even born yet.”

              “What was it like when you first saw the surface?” I walked over to Asgore’s former throne and gently placed a sleeping Willoughby and Lace on it. The two didn’t stir thankfully. Asgore looked hesitant to answer me, “You don’t _have_ to say if you don’t want to.”

              “No. No. My introduction to the surface was a bit different because I had been ill.” I’d almost forgotten about how sick he and some of the other monsters had been, “The first time I was on the surface, I was unconscious. The first time I awoke, I was in a l- hospital. I _can_ remember the first time I stepped foot out into the human world, awake and aware. It was…overwhelming.” Asgore paused. In that brief moment, I walked over and pulled him into a hug. He ran a paw through my hair, “There are so _many_ of you humans. You’ve accomplished so much without magic. That impressed me more than I thought it would. Humans- my father told me- were obsessed with magic back in his day, practically addicted to it. Humanity has taken many great strides since its loss. I didn’t know whether to be scared or in awe, and for a while, I was stuck feeling a mixture of both.”

              “I’m sorry that was so scary for you.” I patted his back.

              “It worked out in the end. My people have an opportunity they didn’t have in the Underground. I’m grateful.” Asgore actually sounded like he genuinely believed that despite the horrible things that had been happening lately.

              “You scare me with that positivity sometimes.” I leaned back. _Hmmm….I hope this goes well._ I tugged him down a little bit to make it easier to reach his face. A quick, soft kiss was pressed against his cheek, “Still, I’m glad that you’re able to see the good going on despite all of the crazy bullshit running through our streets.”

              “I have to be. A king mustn’t lose his comps-“ Asgore tensed. I was whirled around behind him faster than I could react.

              “Asgore?” My hands tangled in his cloak. I peered around his arm right as the world around us took a black tinge. _More distortion?_ A bright cyan light appeared from my chest. I looked down and gasped in horror at seeing my…my… _SOUL_ hovering in my see through chest. My body seemed to have lost all weight and realness to it. A chill set in none the less, “Asgore?” Fear made my voice crack.

              “Please stay behind me.” Asgore’s blood red trident was already in hand, “I do not want you to be harmed.”

              “What’s wrong though?” My eyes quickly flickered back to where I saw Willoughby and Lace still sleeping, unaware of the danger around them. Their little bitty SOULs were a soft gray color and tilted to the side a little bit.

              “Someone is att-“ Asgore tensed and whirled his trident to knock aside blasts of blue and orange energy, “-attacking us. Specifically, you.” Asgore growled once he sensed a change in the air, “It’s my turn now fiend.” His paw glowed with deep orange and red flames that spiraled from his fingertips and around his wrist before creating a vortex of searing flames that attacked the shadowy figure neither of us could see clearly, “No harm shall come to a human as long as I am present. Flee or face the consequences of your cruelty.”

              Color slowly began drain into the world as the monster fled, leaving the same gray/brown slick that was outside of my restaurant more often than not. Asgore stood, tense and wary.

              “He’s gone Asgore.” I comforted him, “It’s over.”

              “This should’ve been a safe place to bring you.” Asgore sighed, his trident dissipating into streams of liquid magic that buried itself back into his body, “I’m sorry that happened.” He looked surprisingly unfatigued despite casting what looked like a powerful spell.

              “It’s fine. No one could’ve known that monster would be down here.” I comforted him, “I still didn’t get a good look at him though. Did you recognize anything about him?”

              “His attacks were skeletal in nature…” Asgore frowned, “Could Alphys have…no….She would’ve reported to me first.” Asgore scowled- surprisingly. Then he shook his head and smiled down at me sadly, “I’m so sorry. I’ll have people look into this. There shouldn’t be any other skeletons besides Sans and Papyrus…..Though I suppose that will only make you worry more.”

              “Asgore.” I tapped his nose. I was worried about the strange monster coming after me again, but it was confusing. Why would it attack me after I saved Willoughby for him? I didn’t have the answers I needed to make a proper judgement call. Thus, I chose to focus on helping Asgore calm down some, “It’s fine. You protected me. Why don’t we just enjoy the rest of the day you’re bound to have planned for us?”

              “Of course.” Asgore nodded. And like that, he reminded me of an overgrown teddy bear again. The fierce, kingly combatant that had been in that darkness with me was gone, “Should we wake Willoughby and Lace? They might enjoy this as well.”

              “Yeah.” I smiled.

              We didn’t encounter that strange monster again. Asgore seemed put out that I had been threatened on his home turf. He didn’t let that negativity ruin the rest of his tour through the Underground however. The king calmly recited history, poems, and legends to the bitties and I, looking perfectly natural in the Underground’s otherworldly setting.

              A birthday that came with a personal tour from a king that acted as a date of sorts.

              What an excellent birthday….minus the random monster attack of course.


	18. Thanksgiving

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I own nothing. Full disclaimer/links can be found in Ch1
> 
> ...I'm hungry now. I'll start working on 19 after lunch and a good walk :)

              Granny’s house had always been a warm place. I was certain at least a few people in the world could understand where I was coming from. There always seemed to that one relative’s house where whatever pain you were going through at home just disappeared into nothing. The nice, luxurious cottage Granny called home whenever she was in town definitely had that effect on my sisters and I.

              “Olivia!” Granny squished me into her taller frame affectionately. It was easy to see who had taught me how to give the best bear hugs, “I’m so glad to see you baby!”

              “I’m glad to see you too.” I laughed, letting Granny squish me.

              “GREETINGS GRANNY!” Papyrus waved at her.

              “Pappy darling.” Granny released me to hug Papyrus, “And my little bitty great-grand babies too.” Granny rubbed a finger under Hiro’s chin, “I’m so glad all of you could make it.”

              “i’m so glad to be here!” Hiro beamed.

              “the other cars though….” Snooze shot the unfamiliar cars a wary look.

              “Joey invited up your friends Undyne and Alphys for Thanksgiving dinner.” Granny explained to Papyrus and I, “She said that the two didn’t have any real family to celebrate with, so they’re here too.”

              “undyne!” Hiro’s eyes sparkled.

              “Oh god.” Harley grumbled, “Chaos. Chaos will happen.”

              “The more the merrier.” I was happy that Undyne and Alphys could enjoy some time with a family on Thanksgiving- even if it was the disjointed mess that was my family, “By the way Granny, say hello to the newest additions to the family I mentioned.” I held up an anxious Willoughby and placid Lace. The former toddler bitty now resembled a teen more than a child. Lace _could_ communicate with others in a very pained voice, but he didn’t like doing it if he could avoid it. The little hybrid let his actions speak for him. Honestly, his unending patience with Hiro and Snooze’s antics never ceased to amaze me.

              “Hello there little ones.” Granny kissed the tops of their heads, leaving dark red lipstick on their bones, “I’m so glad to meet you at last! My little Liv has told me so much about you.”

              “iT’s NiCe To MeEt YoU tOo.” Willoughby wrung his hands together nervously, “UuUm…LaCe Is….”

              “Mute?” Granny finished for him, “I know.” She gently rubbed a thumb across Lace’s face, “I’m so glad to see you darling.” Unlike so many others, Granny didn’t seem to pay any real attention to the malformed portions of Lace that people could see. The hybrid had begun to cover himself from head to toe from a young age because of all of the shocked gasps and fake pity that often followed people seeing his deformities, “Is that Harley’s hoodie?”

              “It’s a little big on him isn’t it?” Harley chuckled, “He seems to like wearing it though, so eh.” He shrugged. Lace did seem particularly attached to Harley. Maybe it was the Lil’ Bro in him recognizing someone who could teach him how to control his surprisingly strong- and wild- abilities.

              “I think it’s adorable.” Granny stood up straight and gestured for us to enter the cottage, “Come right on in. Nadia is helping me finished dinner, so you just go straight into the dining room.”

              “Are you sure you don’t need any help? Papyrus and I are chefs after all.” I offered.

              “Which is why neither of you will be cooking.” Granny shooed us into the dining room, “I won’t have my little ones work while they’re in my house.”

              “pap?” Sans’s voice called from the kitchen, “if that’s you, you’ll want to come watch this. newmore and undyne are arm wrestling!”

              “OH GOODY!” Papyrus hurried to watch the show with Harley, Hiro, and Snooze.

              “Granny-“ I insisted.

              “My chef grandbaby will not be touching anything that’ll remind her of work while she’s here.” Granny pinched my cheek playfully, “You get to relax and pretend like you’re a little girl again.”

              “But I get driven around like cattle?” Nadia’s dry voice interrupted us. As beautiful as ever, my statuesque stunner of a sister had her mane of golden hair tied into a tight braid. She wore her glasses for a change which softened her usually sharp looking features, but the blank, black dress and pumps she wore habitually made it look like she was going to a funeral instead of Thanksgiving dinner, “Favoritism Grandmother?”

              “You have plenty of Thanksgiving meals to make-up for.” Granny glared at her despite Nadia’s pained flinch, “Don’t think I’m going to let the past decade and a half slide just because your twin has been a bit nicer to you. Goodness knows Joey was more helpful to me at Thanksgiving than the lot of you.” With that Granny went back into the kitchen.

              “SHE CONTINUES TO FAVOR JOSEPHINE.” Cesar growled, “WHY MUST SHE INSIST ON THIS?”

              “I have a lot to make up for Cesar.” Nadia’s voice was shockingly brittle and quiet, “One day things might not be like this, but I can’t just ask her to forgive me over night Cesar.”

              “I COULD ALWAYS BREAK HER ANKLE.” Cesar huffed, crossing his legs from where he sat on Nadia’s shoulder, “IT WOULD BE THE LEAST SHE DESERVES FOR THIS NONSENSE.”

              “Nadia?” I hadn’t really seen her in months. Ever since she moved to Greenridge, she’d kind of gone dark. She’d pop up every now and then, but she had been absent for the most part, “Are you okay? Do I need to speak with Granny about this?”

              “Huh?” Nadia blinked to clear her thoughts, “No. Absolutely not. Then she and Josephine will believe I’m attempting to use you to get back into their good graces further.”

              “But it’s hurting you.” I argued.

              “And I’ve hurt my family.” Nadia held a hand up, “It stings, but karma always comes back around to make someone pay for their wicked deeds. I’m shocked that she’s willing to even talk to me after I moved to Greenridge without telling her.”

              “You didn’t tell her you were-“ I cut myself off, “Do you know what that had to look like?”

              “I know what it looked like.” Nadia snapped, “That’s why I know where her anger is coming from. Believe me, I do. That’s why I’m fine taking this. I’ve gone through worse being hazed at my new workplace.”

              “Nadia…” I sounded terribly whiny.

              “Don’t worry about it.” Nadia shook her head. She actually reached a hand up and patted my face, “It’s nothing to fret over. I won’t shatter into a thousand pieces because my grandmother doesn’t love me.” Her eyes cut to Cesar sitting on her shoulder, “I have someone who does love me despite my flaws.”

              “If you’re sure…” I lied through my fucking teeth. I would be getting into an argument with Granny over this later.

              “Thank you.” Nadia’s smile- while genuine- reminded me of a broken doll trying its best to pretend it was okay, “I should return to helping Granny in the kitchen.” There was a loud bang followed by a roaring “NOOOOO”. Nadia and I exchanged a wry look, “You might want to go settle down before one of them breaks the table.”

              “Okay.” I nodded, but when I went to step around Nadia, Lace’s hand shot out and touched her arm, “Lace?”  I paused.

              “This is the new bitty hybrid in the family?” With surprising affection, Nadia rubbed the top of his head, “Hello.”

              Lace patted her arm.

              “Do you need something?” Nadia questioned.

              “ **G** …O… _oO_ … ~~d~~ - _d-D-_ **d**.”

              Nadia blinked and gave him a sad smile.

              “Thank you.” Her voice trembled a little bit. That brief flicker of vulnerability disappeared when she stood up with her head high, “I’ll go finish helping Granny. Go find a seat.” Mouth set into a grim line, Nadia returned to the kitchen with Cesar.

              “ShE’s So SaD…” Willoughby commented under his breath as I went into the dining room.

              “I know, but I think Cesar is helping h-“

              “Livvy!” Sissy had a terribly cocky grin on her face. Undyne sat across from her with her arms crossed angrily, “Guess who just beat the former Captain of the Royal Guard at arm wrestling?”

              “I demand a rematch!” Undyne slammed her fist on the table.

              “Gah.” Cyan and Atlantic both recoiled from where they sat on the far edge of the table.

              “undyne.” Waltzer’s eyes glowed a dangerous blue, “sh.”

              “Sorry little dudes.” Undyne scratched the back of her neck.

              “U-Undyne doesn’t like losing.” Dr. Alphys chuckled, “She c-can be stubborn about it.”

              “I’m willing to go as many times as you’re able.” Sissy rolled her sleeve up once more to display the scar covered, muscular arm that her exercises blessed her with, “Round two fishwoman?”

              “YOU CAN DO IT UNDYNE!” Papyrus cheered.

              “oh no.” Hiro wailed, “who does the marvelous baby blue endorse in this scenario?”

              “please don’t break your grandmother’s table babe.” Sans warned Sissy while playing with Greyson, “you’d end up sending splinters everywhere.”

              “And I’m _not_ getting a ton of wooden spikes buried in me to protect this brat.” Flowey hissed. He was also playing with Greyson.

              “You’ve already almost been run over protecting him Flowey.” Sunshine pointed out. The ray was running his hands through Tinsel’s flaming “hair”, “I think that threat is empty at this point.”

              Flowey blushed.

              “i think he’s just jealous that snuggle’s cuddling with someone else.” Blake snickered. Snuggle, instead of being wrapped up in Flowey, was actually holding Snooze. The sleepy and meek were both dozing.

              “Well, at least he isn’t trying to kill anyone.” Harley dangled from the unlit candelabra on the table. Raze stood beside him. I guessed the two had been having a conversation before I arrived. I sat down and placed Willoughby and Lace on the table. Willoughby, more than a little scared at this point, opted to stay close to me and kept his arms tangled around a couple of my fingers, “Kiddo. I’m over here if you want to chill with me.” Lace tried his best to place Harley’s location, but he couldn’t seem to really place it even after Harley snapped a few times to help him with echolocation, “We’ll get you up to speed someday kiddo.”

              “Oh!” Tinsel shot up from where he had been tolerating his father’s coddling, “The new kid! Tic! C’mere!” Tinsel hurried over to Lace, “Hi!”

              Lace waved back.

              “Oh right. You can’t talk.” Tinsel suddenly remembered.

              “sel..” Atlantic’s voice had a slight reprimand in it.

              “Sorry.” Tinsel looked down guiltily, “That was rude of me.”

              Lace waved it off. My hybrid was still a bit nervous about talking to them at first, but as time passed the three began a relatively quiet conversation near the candelabra where Harley and Raze continued their own conversation.

              _I don’t think this place as ever been this lively before._

              I watched the antics of my new found family with a happy smile. Undyne and Sissy had 22 rematches that ended with Sissy victorious only by one match. Dr. Alphys and Sans managed to have a conversation over Papyrus and some of the other bitties cheering on either Undyne or Sissy. The conversation they had mostly went over my head because of all the science mumbo jumbo they started spouting out. _Our Thanksgiving dinner definitely got more crowded this year._

              I wondered what Asgore was doing. He had told me that a couple of his coworkers invited him to Thanksgiving dinner because he was divorced, so I wondered how things on his end were going. _I hope you’re having a good day Asgore._ Granny wouldn’t have minded another person coming to Thanksgiving dinner. I could’ve easily invited him along. That just felt like too rude of an idea though. Some of his coworkers, who obviously cared about his wellbeing, beat me to the punch. _I’ll be first next year though. You can count on that!_

              “Dinner is served.” Granny cheered, entering the dining room with plates of hot food. Barely managing to balance her plates, Nadia trailed behind her cautiously, “Sorry that took so long!”

              “It’s fine Granny.” I took a deep breath the instant the food hit the table. The warm, inviting smell almost made my mouth water, “This smells delicious! I don’t think I recognize a couple of these dishes though.”

              “I changed it up this year.” Granny winked at me, “I don’t want you eating something you eat every day.”

              Settling everyone down to eat took a bit longer than expected. There were so many of us. Granny even joked about having to get a larger table for next year, shooting my sisters and I a suggestive wink to let us know that Greyson needed some cousins. I stuck my tongue out at her, and Sissy rolled her eyes.

              “Sans, Josephine.” Nadia said over a bite of turkey, “Have you thought about having children of your own?”

              “I don’t think that would exactly work the way you’re thinking it would.” Sissy was expertly feeding Greyson instead of eating herself.

              “A-Actually,” Dr. Alphys took a sip of her drink before continuing, “Humans and monsters have actually been able to breed successfully.”

              “Really?” Sissy shot Sans a slightly wounded look. _I guess he didn’t tell her._

              “with an alarmingly high mortality rate for the mothers- especially human ones.” Sans sighed, “didn’t want to get your hopes up if those numbers don’t drop.”

              “Haven’t bitties and humans been able to breed too though?” Nadia pursed her lips, “Though, there isn’t a single trace of human in the offspring. It’s just a faster way to produce more of one bitty type.”

              “Where on earth are you learning all of this?” Granny frowned at Nadia over her glass.

              “I’m thinking about getting Cesar a companion.” Nadia shrugged one shoulder, “I’ve ended up stumbling onto a lot of odd research along the way.”

              “S-Sounds like you’ve stumbled into the w-weird part of the internet.” Dr. Alphys laughed.

              “Could you imagine a small little human, skeleton baby though?” Undyne grinned at the happy couple, “They’d probably be really cute.”

              “Thanks for the vote of confidence.” Sissy mockingly saluted her, “I don’t think we’ll be trying anything until after he grows a pair and asks me to marry him.”

              “working on it.” Sans pouted, “so far, most of my plans keep crumbling before my eyes.”

              “You don’t need an elaborate plan!” Sissy’s frustrated voice went a notch too loud, “Sorry Cy, Atlantic.” She humbly apologized to the two before turning her attention back to Sans, “You could _literally_ ask me to right now, and I would say ‘yes’ you dunce.”

              “i’m doing things the right way.” Sans tugged on some of her hair playfully, “besides, you’re cute when you get all worked up.”

              “I hate you.” Sissy groused and kissed him quickly, making all of the bitties either laugh, ‘aww’, or groan while they ate, “Anyways, no attempting some crazy breeding experiment until after my hand has a permanent addition to it, and this little guy-” Sissy bounced Greyson on her lap some to make him laugh, “-is a bit older. If we want to talk relationships, why don’t we talk about who our little sissy is kissy kissy with.”

              “You did not just throw me under the bus.” I gasped.

              “Oh yes I did.” Sissy stuck her tongue out at me.

              “Dating?” Granny cocked a brow.

              “Asgore right?” Nadia had to have some kind of witchcraft to know that, “You’re social media is splattered with images of the two of you together.”

              “No way!” Undyne looked genuinely happy, “You’re going out with the king?”

              “I WOULDN’T SAY IT’S ANYTHING OFFICAL LIKE THAT.” Papyrus shook his head, “IT’S MORE LIKE MY AMAZING HUMAN FRIEND AND HE ARE….OH…WHAT’S THE WAY TO DESCRIBE IT AGAIN LIVI?”

              “Feeling each other out.” I answered.

              “Not up?” Sissy thought I wouldn’t notice that.

              “ _No_. He just got divorced a few months ago. Our romance is perfectly chaste…sadly.” I sniffed, “I’m having fun though. He’s a very good man.”

              “He is.” Undyne agreed, “Treat him well please.”

              “I’ll try.” I nodded, “Can I just note something funny?”

              The table chorused answers of approval.

              “Granny, Undyne, and Alphys are the only ones without bitties.” I grinned, “You know, there are alphys and undyne type bitties....it could be a fun experience.”

              “A-A…t-tiny Un-U-Und-dy-dyne?” Dr. Alphys squeaked, blushing a brilliant shade of orange.

              “Oh really?” Undyne grinned, “They’re bound to be so cool looking!”

              “They are.” Sissy winked at her, “The best of the best.”

              _I like this_. I observed my surroundings with a warmth blooming my chest that I didn’t want to lose. _I like this a lot….This is **literally** what I’ve dreamt about having my entire life. _

              It wasn’t perfect. My parents hadn’t changed their ways or even shown up. My family still had some resentment boiling under the surface, and Asgore wasn’t there with me.

              Still….

              “I love guys.” I laughed after some joke Sans made that nearly drove Papyrus to throw a plate at him.

              _I’m so happy._

_So happy._

_So happy._

_Happy._

_**Why can’t life always be happy?**_


	19. The Critic

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I own nothing. Full disclaimer in Ch1
> 
> Did you think this plot point vanished into thin air? If you did, it didn't. If you didn't, good job :)

              That early December night was proving itself to be the death of me. Lunch service had been fine- chaotic as always, but nowhere near as stressful. Then, just about every VIP in town decided that tonight would be the _perfect fucking night_ to **_all_** eat at my restaurant. My staff and I were very confused at the sudden influx of customers until Irene recognized one of them as one of the most important food critics in the Mt. Ebott area.

              _She’s come. Holy fucking shit she’s come._

              We had had a warning months in advance, but no amount of warning would suffice in that moment. With every chair filled, I was ready to rip my hair out and scream. _Why does life hate me so much?_

              “Let’s go guys!” I called out to my staff, “Speedy and good! That’s what we’re going for. Nothing raw, overcooked, or marred in anyway! I _will_ be judging everything with a critical eye!”

              “Yes chef!” They all called back to me.

              “Chef.” Vipiria came back with the ticket, “The critic’s order.”

              “Vipiria?” Her voice sounded oddly hollow, “What’s wrong?”

              “Nothing chef. The critic was just….rude.” Vipiria shook her head, “I won’t let it get in the way of my performance tonight. Don’t worry about it.”

              Vipiria hurried to continue working. _The critic was rude to my waitress?_ The desire to protect my staff rose up instinctively. Some part of my brain- surely the immature part- wanted to spit in the bitch’s food for disrespecting my staff, but I had eaten tuna for lunch. No way in hell was going to deal with a lawsuit if the woman had a seafood allergy.

              “At least she has some taste.” I grumbled down at the ticket before reciting it aloud to my staff, “This is for the critic!” It almost pained me to read Ilya’s special off, but I just hoped that he was looking down on me with a smile wherever he was.

              “Mom.” Harley slid up next to me in the confusion, “I went out to the front.”

              “Yeah?”

              “Asgore’s here. So are Aunt Jo and Sans.” Harley told me. He paused before adding, “The critic is being a total cunt to Vipiria by the way.”

              “Dammit.” I almost cut myself because of the fury that travelled down my arm, “How bad?”

              “Vipiria isn’t reduced to tears yet, but it’s definitely wearing on her.” Harley warned me.

              “Thanks for the heads up. Take over for me?”  I asked him, “I’m going to go greet this ‘critic’.”

              “Sure thing.” Harley nodded, “Willoughby and Lace are in the back listening to an audio book by the way.”

              “Okay.” I could understand why my more jumpy bitties would be in the back. The kitchen was a mess of noise and conundrum. Signs of wear were showing up in the way Snooze carried himself, so I knew that he’d probably tap out in a couple of minutes, “I’ll be right back. Hold down the fort.”

              “Yes chef.” Harley nodded at me.

              The front was even more chaotic than the back. People were crowding tables- talking, eating, having a good time. I would never be angry at my customers for enjoying their evening, but I sincerely hoped that Sissy hadn’t brought Cyan with her that night.

              Asgore was the first person I recognized. He was at one of the more private tables with a woman. If my eyes weren’t deceiving me, she was the mayor of Grayridge. _I hope she isn’t giving him problems again._ Sissy and Sans were also seated at one of the more private tables. They must’ve gotten a friend or baby sitter to look after Greyson and the bitties. _Aww…they’re probably on a date. How cute._

              The critic- a beady eyed little beast of a woman with chapped lips, six chins, and grubby hands- sat at her table trying her best to look like she owned the world. If arrogance and contempt had scents, she’d reek of them, staining the air around her. She glowered at a table filled with an easy going, sweet family laughing at something one of the boys did. Everything seemed to annoy her. _I’m supposed to impress this woman for good PR?_

              “Snake.” She snapped at Vipiria as she passed.

              “Yes ma’am?” Vipiria slithered over, respectful and courteous.

              “I wanted my drink to be diet.” The critic glowered at her, “I have cholesterol problems.”

              “That is our diet drink ma’am.” Vipiria forced a polite smile, “Is it not to your liking? We have other diet drinks.”

              “This isn’t diet.” The critic spat, “It doesn’t taste diet!”

              “It is ma’am.” Vipiria insisted, “I checked around five times just to make sure since you mentioned having health issues.”

              “Oh, so you’re so incompetent that you need to do something five times to get it right? Maybe you should’ve done it a sixth because this _isn’t_ diet!” The critic slammed her fist down on the table, turning more than a few heads her way. My blood was boiling, and I noticed Sissy’s eyes train in on the situation from where she sat. Only Sans’s grip on her wrist kept her from storming over.

              “Excuse me?” I interjected myself into the scenario with a beaming smile that make me want to puke my guts up, “Hello, I’m the owner. Vipiria, why don’t I take over?”

              “Yes chef.” Vipiria barely hid the relief in her eyes as she nodded and all but raced away.

              “What seems to be the problem ma’am?” _Cheerful, polite, and kind Olivia. Honest, caring, and efficient Olivia. That’s what you need to be._ I chanted that mantra in my head over and over again.

              “Your stupid waitress gave me a regular soda.” The critic handed me the drink hard enough that it sloshed out onto my arm, “I need _diet_ soda.”

              “Yes ma’am. Could I have the specific kind you ordered?” Deciding to just replace the drink and hopefully stop the problems happening, I prepared myself. She rattled off the drink name again with a face that only a mother could love before _shooing me off to go get her a drink._

              “I’m going to kill her.” I muttered under my breath.

              This time around, I brought the glass and the giant pitcher marked with the type of drink she wanted. I poured it out in front of her to keep her from arguing with me again.

              “I’ll make sure that Vipiria has this on hand for your special needs ma’am.” Cranking my smile up a few watts, I added, “I hope the rest of your visit goes more smoothly.”

              On my way back to my kitchen, I caught Sissy’s eyes. Her read ‘Does she need my food up her ass?’, and mine responded ‘No. I’ve got this’.

              “Vipiria.” I called out to my waitress, “Anytime she needs a refill, use this pitcher. Let me know if she keeps giving you problems.”

              “Yes chef.” Vipiria gave me a guilty look, “I’m sorry you had to step in.”

              “It’s fine.” Harley stepped aside and let me slide back into work, “I’m not going to stand for someone harassing my staff.”

              “And that’s why we love you.” Avirai gave me a look that made me feel proud.

              “You can always count on it too.” I gave my staff a very cheesy thumbs up before throwing myself back into work full force, “Now let’s go people!”

              Things were a bit quieter after that. None of the other customers decided to act out like the critic did. I’m guess Sissy probably sent everyone a threatening glare if they so much as looked like they were about to kick up a fuss. _I must’ve ruined their date. Sorry Sans._

              “IS MY BROTHER TRULY OUT THERE?” Papyrus said in a brief moment where every table had their entrée.

              “mhm.” Hiro nodded. Snooze- just as I thought he would- had tapped out to go in the back with Willoughby and Lace. Thus, Hiro and Harley were the only two bitties rushing around the kitchens with the rest of us, “he and my _amazing_ aunt haven’t ordered dessert yet if you want to go say hello.”

              “She’s probably going to hog that table until the critic leaves.” Harley pointed out.

              “More than likely.” I agreed.

              “I don’t know why some critics have to be this fucking rude.” Rosie muttered, “I mean, Vipiria gave the bitch the drink she wanted. Why did she have to go star throwing fit like a kid?”

              “She probably just wants excuses to knock down the rating as much as possible.” Damon sighed, “She’s notorious for doing so.”

              “She literally makes a living destroying the reputations of good restaurants?” My jaw dropped.

              “Sad to say it chef, but he’s right.” Con nodded sadly. Then he scoffed and said, “We’ll be fine though. People _know_ our food is good. Word of mouth will keep her from doing too much damage to us.”

              “WE DO HAVE VERY LOYAL CUSTOMERS.” Papyrus beamed.

              _Mostly because a lot of Sissy’s friends came here because I’m her little sister._ That was one of those things I didn’t know if I should be bitter or grateful about. I technically wasn’t standing on my own two feet, but the edge my sister’s name brought me helped me out a lot in the beginning. Very few people wanted to cross Josephine Ophelia Arietta Newmore after all.

              “Chef..”

              I turned to find Vipiria near tears.

              “What’s wrong?” I let Harley and Hiro take over what I was doing, “Is it the critic?”

              “Yes.” Vipiria’s low hiss broke my heart.

              “VIPIRIA?” Papyrus tugged her into a gentle hug.

              “I’ll go deal with this.” I clenched my fists together hard enough it hurt.

              The front of the house wasn’t as packed as it had been earlier. I hoped that would make this less of a spectacle, but I knew that even a few people could get the rumor mill going. Sans _literally_ had to sit on Sissy’s lap to keep her from storming over. To anyone else, they just looked like an adorable couple PDAing way to much. I knew Sissy well enough to recognize the slight flare in her nostrils and minute twist of her lips to indicate her fury. The broken garble of Russian she was loudly muttering also added to how angry she was.

              “There you are.” The critic barked at me from her table while I was still a few tables away.

              Asgore, who hadn’t left despite the mayor leaving, gave the woman a flat, dangerous look that honestly worried me. _This idiot has two people ready to slice her throat, and only one of them is being kept in check._ I shot Asgore a calm, placating smile and winked at him. He smiled back, but I could still tell he wasn’t going to be leaving. _Why do the people I love have to be so overprotective of me?_

              “Hello ma’am.” I beamed at her again.

              “Are you done flirting with your customers?” The critic made a disgusted face at Asgore. He managed to keep his expression mostly neutral, “You do know who that is don’t you?”

              “I know he’s my boyfriend.” _Fuck. I don’t know that. I don’t shit._ I glanced back at Asgore and saw that he had a small, pleased smile on his face, “He’s just a bit worried about what’s going on, so could you please tell me what the issue is? I’ll try my best to fix it.”

              “Of course you’d be fucking the things you hire.” The critic looked at me like I had stabbed a newborn, “What is this disgusting dish?”

              It was Ilya’s special.

              The special I worked on with him for two weeks straight. Two weeks filled with laughter, comradery, and a love of cooking. We started working on it around the 3rd month my restaurant had been open. He’d been the first new hire I’d gotten after booting the rest of them. Positive, caring, and very skilled, Ilya had been a welcomed addition to my kitchen. He’d been a welcome friend in my life too.

              “That is a new menu item.” My voice became clipped, “Is there something wrong with it?”

              There wasn’t. I knew there wasn’t. I had cooked that dish myself that night, making damn sure there wasn’t a _single_ thing she could complain about. The backs of my teeth ached with how hard I was silently, subtly grinding them.

              “I’m aware that it’s a new addition to the menu. I can read.” The critic cut me a dangerous look. _Well, my good review is already out the fucking window….I don’t really care._ I smiled back at her none the less, “I’m asking who would even eat this travesty.”

              “Is there something wrong with _your_ plate?”

              “No the problem is within the concept of the dish! It’s way too spicy.”

              “The special comes in mild and hot. You asked for hot, so you received hot.”

              “It’s _too_ hot. How can anyone with a tongue even eat this?” The critic sneered down at the plate like it offended her, “I know your specials were made by your staff. You should fire whoever came up with this disgusting mash-up. None of the flavors blend-“ They did. They blended perfectly, “-the color is terrible-“ The presentation was immaculate, “-This is all around a horrible dish! Whoever made this deserves to be shot.”

              What was that?

              Oh, just my last straw being incinerated by the flames of my fuming rage threatening to lash out and make me punch this bloated bitch so hard she _popped_.

              “Get out.” My nails bit into my upper arms hard enough to sting, “Now.”

              “Excuse me?” The beast put her hand up to her chest in offense.

              “I said: GET OUT. You don’t even have to pay the tab- just get out of my restaurant!” My nails raked down my arm leaving bloody, two inch long welts on my arms, “Now! You will not come in here and treat my staff like garbage! All night you’ve been making my other customers uncomfortable and harassing Vipiria- one of the hardest working people I know.”

              “You are obviously a naïve _child_ who doesn’t understand-“ The critic stood up despite her fat ass barely fitting in the goddamn chair.

              “ **You** don’t understand anything.” I roared, “Do you want to know who made that special!? Do you? I’ll fucking tell you! Ilya Flamesman, one of my close friends and hardest workers, created that dish. He poured weeks into it- perfecting taste, texture, presentation. His heart and soul are on that plate, and do you want to know something else?” I leaned in close enough to smell her nasty breath, “He’s **_dead_**. You are literally insulting a perfect rendition of a dead man’s special, precious dish, and I will cut my own heart out before I sit here and take it lying down. We have been gracious, polite, courteous, and kind this entire evening. You cannot seem to find the common decency to return the favor. Thus, I will say it again: Get _out_. I don’t care if you give us a 0 out of 10. The opinion of a harpy who snarls at a five year old for crying after he trips and skins his knee-“ I had almost been ready to boot her out then and there when Vipiria relayed _that_ detail of the evening, “- but I decided to continue giving you the benefit of the doubt. My patience has run thin. My back has been broken. Get out and _never come back._ ”

              The critic, who had turn a rather ghastly shade of angry purple-red, puffed up like an blow up doll. A dark shadow fell over us. It made _her_ pause and cringe, but the familiar shape of the shadow and warmth of the figure behind me made it much less intimidating.

              “Olivia?” Asgore asked me gently, “Do you need assistance?”

              “No.” I took a steadying breath, “I might need someone to hold me back though.”

              “Bah, I say deck the bitch.” A new voice added.

              Sissy waltzed up with Sans tossed over one shoulder. Honestly, Sissy could probably lift three of him into the air if she needed to, so I shouldn’t have expected his extra weight tactic to work for too long. He lifted his head and gave me a weak, apologetic smile.

              “i tried kid. i really did.” He winced.

              “Comic, you literally weigh less than a human kid.” Sissy snorted, fixing his position on her shoulder. Sissy was giving the critic a dangerous, wild look that had been known to send grown adult scurrying for cover, “Are you bugging my little baby boo? Who the fuck are you again? I can’t seem to remember…”

              “I will have you know that I am Rachel Wattson.” The critic stamped her foot, “The most prominent critic in the Mt. Ebott area.”

              “The former most prominent critic in the Grayridge area.” Sissy corrected.

              “Excuse me?” The critic gaped at her.

              “You’ll see.” Sissy said in a sing-song voice, “Now, you’d better just slink back off to whatever hellhole you crawled out of and screw yourself. I’ve met many critics in my life, and I’ve got to say….you’re the rudest one I think I’ve ever met.”

              I think the combination of Asgore, Sissy, and the stares of the other dinners, most of which appeared to be on _my_ side, is what made the critic cave. She left throwing one of the largest adult temper tantrums I’ve ever had the displeasure to witness. The bitch even broke one of our lamps!

              “I’ll be billing you for that!” I called down the streets at her.

              I pulled my head back in to a light round of applause. Blushing deep red, I bowed to the customers and actually smiled at them.

              “I’m sorry for the disruption everyone. Dessert will be on the house okay?” I offered. A couple of the kids cheered again.

              Sissy and Asgore followed me back into the kitchen.

              “BROTHER?” Papyrus peered down at where Sissy seemed to have completely forgotten that she was carrying the shorter skeleton, “WHY IS IET CARRYING YOU?”

              “because she loves to remind me of just how strong she is. it really lifts her mood.”

              Papyrus flicked some garlic powder at him.

              “Are you okay baby boo?” Sissy licked her thumb and cleaned something off of my face.

              “I’m fine.” I chuckled, gently swatting her hands away, “Thank you for backing me up though. Sorry that I probably ruined your date.”

              “its fine.” Sans shrugged it off.

              “Go back and order some of the on the house dessert.” I insisted, practically shoving her out of the kitchen, “Please, try and make some good out of this.”

              “But-“

              “Sissy!”

              “Fine.” Sissy sighed and spun around. She left the kitchen after tugging my head down to kiss my forehead.

              “Jeez.” I shook my head. Asgore cleared his throat, “I hope that the critic didn’t ruin whatever meeting you were having with the mayor?”

              “It did not.” Asgore assured me. He placed a paw on my shoulder, “Are you truly alright?” He questioned me in a low voice.

              “I am.” I kissed him right under his eye, “Uh…sorry about the um…boyfriend thing. It kind of slipped out with me meaning too.”

              “Don’t worry.” Asgore’s eyes flickered across the kitchen where my staff was obviously listening in on everything we were saying. Leaning in close, he whispered low enough to where I could just _barely_ hear it, “I accidentally told the mayor “This is my girlfriend’s restaurant” anyways, so I’d say we’re even.”

              Asgore was too cute for his own good sometimes.

              “Well then.” I could probably use my face if to cook if our stoves broke right then, “Ahem. You should go back and enjoy some free dessert your majesty. Call me sometime and let me know when our next date is though.”

              “Of course.” Asgore nodded, nuzzling the side of my face.

              I think my entire staff took a picture of that.

              _They have blackmail now…_

              They also proceeded to rib me for being a ‘goat fucker’- in a nice way- the rest of the night.

              Deciding to one up them, I ordered a shirt that read “I’m Fucking a 6'10 Goatman”. It took a while for the shirt to be accurate, but it was the joke that counted. It’s still my favorite shirt actually. Mostly because of all the shocked looks it gets me.


	20. A Man Once Dead

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I own nothing. Full disclaimer/links can be found in Ch1
> 
> And Happy Holidays everybody! I hope you guys have a great weekend!  
> Please don't kill me over the cliffhanger!  
> BTW: I tried to draw Jo on my tumblr if anyone is interested. You can find a link to my tumblr in my profile.

** “Chez Newmore Fails To Impress: A Child’s Attempt at Running a Restaurant **

              **I recently had the displeasure of going to Chez Newmore after the establishment won the popular vote. Everything looked fine on paper- besides the youth of the owner of course. Giving the place the benefit of the doubt- my most foolish decision in this matter- I went. The entire restaurant looked like the designer couldn’t decide who it was for, and there were _monsters_ on the staff. A hulking snake beast served as my “waitress” and gave me regular soda after I specifically ordered diet. Then, I got the horrible pleasure of meeting the owner. Instead of quickly and professionally address the potentially lethal mistake, Olivia took her time and flirted with one of the customers. This customer was King Asgore, who she claimed to be dating. You heard me right folks. Chez Newmore is run by a disgusting woman who would fornicate with a monster. After she flirted with the monster and listened to my problems, she returned with more regular soda pretending it to be diet! I’m in the honest belief that she was trying to kill me, and I will be having someone investigate this. The food was absolutely dreadful. She allowed her vile monster staff to put specials on the menu. I was unlucky enough to decide to order one as my entrée…”**

              I gritted my teeth and continued to read the online article that had made headlines because of the ‘trying  to kill me comment’. When it first came out, I knew I wouldn’t be able to sit through her harping on about my staff without frothing at the mouth, so I let Rosie and Damon give me a run down. I decided to finally sit down and look at the damn thing after the police finished their “investigation” and deemed it that the woman was completely insane.

              The critic continues to insult my staff, décor, and appetizer for another four paragraphs. Then came the part that had reduced Heats to fits of anger.

              **“The horrendous entrée I mentioned earlier was served. The dish was _far_ too spicy for any human being with a tongue. I guess she’s spent too much time with monsters- which again is a disgusting perversion of the natural order of things. When I called her out to discuss the dish, she flew off the handle and tried her best to ream me for being “insensitive” about a dish one of her dead coworkers made. Darling, it’s not my fault your food is shit and your coworker doesn’t know how to cook. Then, she had the audacity- the kind only a child has- to kick me out of the restaurant! In her fury, she broke one of her vases and threatened to bill _me_ for it? I will not take this lightly. **

**Listen to me and listen to me well: Chez Newmore is not a restaurant. It’s a building where a child is trying her best to play restaurateur without the experience needed. The staff is a horrific mixture of human and monster. The food is terrible. The owner is a _big baby_ who can’t take genuine criticism. She actually had her “big sissy” step up and defend her. I’m scare of what kind of precedent this sets for future restaurants. Are we really going to tolerate this? Are we going to allow children to run the places we eat? I most certainly will not. I’ve begun to boycott Chez Newmore and encourage my friends to do the same. Do not eat here. It’s not worth your time or money, and if the owner is reading this, I’d love to see your big sister protect you from this now.”**

               I startled all of the bitties by flinging the tablet into the wall. It shattered spectacularly and made me feel worlds better. I had been wondering what had caused the shit storm I found myself in, and it had all be revealed to me by the bitch herself.

              People had begun to come to Chez Newmore just to meet the ‘childish owner’ that ran the place. They were all shocked to learn that the décor actually looked good, the food was tasty, and I was a _mature adult_ capable of running my own damn business because I had two college degrees prepping me for it!

              _Why can’t I have nice things?_ Tears sprang up into my eyes. _Why? Why why whywhywhywhywhywhywhywhy-_

              “mama!” Hiro slammed into my chest, “it’s okay mama!”

              “H-Huh?” I sniffled. My tears had begun to fall without me realizing it, “Oh. Sorry baby.”

              “Why don’t you sit down Mom?” Harley pointed to my desk chair. I reluctantly plopped down into it.

              “LIVI?” Papyrus popped his head into my office, “AVIRAI HEARD SOMETHING BRE- LIVI!”

              Papyrus hurried in and pressed his hands to my face. He rubbed away my tears with his thumb.

              “YOU READ THE REVIEW DIDN’T YOU?” Papyrus pouted, “I TOLD YOU NOT TO!”

              “I had to.” I protested.

              “no you really didn’t.” Snooze sat on my hand with a pout, “you’ve just hurt your own feelings mimi.”

              “Traitor.” I stuck my tongue out at him in an attempt to lighten the mood. It just looked sad. A smiling clown was trying to ignore having its heart ripped out, “I’m fine Pap.”

              “…OlIvIa…” Willoughby rubbed small circles into the back of my hand, “MaYbE yOu ShOuLd TaKe A bReAk? JuSt A sHoRt OnE.”

              ‘Asgore’ Lace wrote on the back of my hand with one finger, ‘?’

              “It is his lunch break.” I dried my eyes, “But I’ve got to work right now. I shouldn’t have even taken this break.” I stood up.

              “Mom,” Harley kicked a paperclip at me. _He’s really been spending too much time around Raze._ Harley frowned at me, “Some guy got all up in your face trying to get you to freak out on him, and then called you a fake bitch because you held your composure for the _fifth_ time today. I think you’re allowed to be angry.”

              “mama.” Hiro kiss my cheek, “i love you! i’m sorry i’m not big enough to scare the bad guys away.”

              “Hiro sweetie.” I picked him up and cuddled him close to my face, “You do more than enough already.” The pure concern radiating from my bitties helped my heart recover some, “You all do. Seriously, see?” I smiled at them, “I’m already starting to feel better. Now.” I stood up, “It’s time to get to work babies! I can’t just keep being a Debbie Downer in the back of the kitchen!”

              My bitties and Papyrus didn’t stop frowning at me.

              “If I promise to let Asgore take me on another date this Sunday, will you quit frowning at me?” I questioned them. They nodded enthusiastically, “Alright, alright. Papyrus I hope you understand that this means I owe you another few hours of bitty sitting once _you_ start dating.”

              “FRIENDS DON’T KEEP TABS SILLY.” Papyrus booped my nose with one finger, “YOU DON’T OWE ME ANYTHING!”

              _I owe you the world Papyrus. I really do._

              “Whatever you say buddy.” I stood up and kissed his cheek, “Now, let’s get cooking!”

              It got to the point where we literally just started turning away people only interested in meeting the crazy owner. Thankfully, the local news station was more than willing to run a story about what actually happened- especially when I offered to let them see everything _on tape_. Somehow that woman honestly thought I didn’t have security cameras in the front of my restaurant. I had been dealing with harassment from the bitty fighting rings _and_ one of my staff members had been murdered. Just about every inch of my restaurant that could legally have a security camera there was one. We got a lot of hand written and phone call apologizes after that.

              That didn’t make my family story worrying though.

              “Are you certain you don’t want me to make sure she can’t get a job anywhere?” I could picture the scowl that probably sat on Nadia’s face, “I can do that you know.”

              “Nadia.” I sighed, combing my hair for my date with Asgore, “Sissy’s already run her out of town. I think she’s suffered enough.”

              “No she hasn’t, but if you want to let her get off easy….” Nadia sighed, “Are you certain she won’t come back while Josephine is away? She leaves tomorrow right?”

              “She won’t. Granny already weighed in to make sure of that.” My family’s overprotectiveness was borderline suffocating at that point, “I’m _fine_ Nadia. Really.”

              “……If you say so.” Nadia relented to my relief, “Do enjoy your date Olivia.”

              “Please tell me you haven’t called and threatened Asgore.” I grumbled.

              “That would be unprofessional.”

              “Thank-“

              “I e-mailed him.”

              “ _Nadia!”_ I threw my brush at my phone, “Come on! I’m not 16 anymore.”

              “You’re beginning to attach yourself romantically to a man who has been divorced before. I’m going to worry.” Nadia sounded more than a little miffed, “As the only Newmore sister who’s been married, I believe I have some jurisdiction over such matters.”

              I bit back a cheeky remark about her divorce because that would’ve been crossing a line.

              “Well, I’ll let you- Yes Cesar?” Nadia’s voice grew quiet as she spoke away from her phone, “I have to go Olivia. Cesar has just pointed out something critical. Enjoy your date.”

              “Okay.” I paused, “I love you.”

              Nadia drew a quick breath.

              “I love you too.”

              She’d never been as willing to enjoy displays of affection, so being able to say ‘I love you’ without having to worry about her biting my head off was a good thing. Bridges to my sisters- Josephine and Nadia- were slowly being built up as the two began to make-up for past wrongs. _It’s such a relief…._

              “mimi?” Snooze raised his head and yawned making the pile of clothing he was under shift. It almost looked like something out of a horror movie, “why am i covered in your dresses?”

              “Sorry.” I tugged the clothing off of him and grinned when I saw his familiar green eyes, “I forgot you were napping there.”

              “it’s okay.” Snooze rubbed at his tired eyes, “you’re ready for your date?”

              “Mhm.” I picked him up, “We’re going back to the Underground, so I didn’t dress up too much.”

              “ooohh…i wanna see it sometime.” Snooze nuzzled my hand. I began to walk out into the living room with him, “willoughby said that it sounds pretty. lace agrees with him.”

              “I’m sure I’ll end up taking all of you down there someday.” I promised him, “I promised Asgore it’d just be me and him this time though. He probably wouldn’t mind if I changed it, but I’d feel guilty about it.”

              “it’s fine. i want to see _some_ time. not right now. too tired right now. lace hade me up all night listening to 50 different j-pop bands.” Snooze let his head drop to my thumb, “i love my nephew, but ugh.”

              “Poor thing. I’m guessing Hiro was with you too?”

              Snooze nodded against my hand.

              _Well that explains why Hiro was so lethargic today._

              Hiro was actually napping on Papyrus’s lap.

              “i DoN’t MiNd JuSt LiStEnInG tO mOvIeS.” Willoughby was arguing.

              “You and Lace still wouldn’t really be able to enjoy any of the films out right now though.” Harley protested, “I want to make sure we’re all having a good time today.”

              “hArLeY…” Willoughby wrapped his arms around himself, “lAcE aNd I aRe BoTh FiNe WiTh It. SeE? hE’s EvEn ExCiTeD.”

              Lace did anxiously bounce his foot up and down.

              “But still…” Harley scratched the back of his skull. Lace, who was sitting next to Hiro on Papyrus’s lap, reached down to tug at his sleeves pleadingly, “Oh alright. Only because you’re adorable.” Harley cupped the hybrid’s cheeks, “One of these days I’ll become immune to those puppy dog eyes…eye.”

              “So I take it you guys have a plan for the day?” I handed Snooze over to Papyrus.

              “YES!” He bounced in his seat some, jostling the bitties a little bit, “WE’RE GOING TO THE MOVIES!”

              “I hope you guys have fun.” I kissed the top of Papyrus’s head, “Try not to watch anything scary, or all of you will end up clinging to me in the middle of the night.”

              “THE GREAT PAPYRUS DOES NOT FEEL FEAR!” Papyrus puffed up proudly.

              “Uh huh…Papyrus.” I dropped my voice to a low whisper, “The boogey man…he’s…”

              “NO!” Papyrus yelped looking around.

              “My point exactly.” I flashed him a peace sign. He threw a pillow at me, “I love you guys! Have fun!” I hurried out of the living room. Sans was waiting for me outside, “Hey.”

              “sup kiddo?” Sans yawned.

              “Greyson keep you up all night?” I asked sympathetically.

              “no, you’re sister did though.”

              I cracked him across the back of his skull.

              “worth it.” He snickered and offered me a hand, “come on. asgore’s waiting.”

              Teleportation sucked as usual. The worst part had to be that disorienting lack of gravity sensation followed by extreme nausea when gravity actually kicked back in. _How does Sissy **stand** this?_

              “Thank you Sans.” My legs were still more than a little shaky, “It must suck being everyone’s free ride.”

              “i’m not everyone’s free ride. mostly just yours.” Sans shrugged, “it’s no problem kiddo. you ever need a lift anywhere, just text me. you’re pap’s bestest human friend after all.”

              Sans teleported away only after making sure I’d be able to walk.

              “Asgore?” I called out as I walked through New Home, “Asgore?”

              “Sorry.” Asgore appeared from a doorway.

              “Asgo.” I walked over and pulled him down for a quick kiss on the cheek, “It’s good to see you again.”

              “How have you been holding up since the critic’s visit?” Asgore asked, one paw placed on my low back.

              “Well enough…a bit rough around the edges at times.” I admitted, “Still, this’ll be a nice break from it all, so thank-you.”

              “It’s no trouble for me.” Asgore hugged me close, “I enjoy our time together.”

              _Annd there goes my cheeks- flaming bright red._

              “So what are we doing this fine early evening?” I questioned, letting him lead me away from New Home.

              “I asked Mettaton if he still had MTT restort’s old chef’s phone number. He did.” Asgore looked more than a little happy.

              “MTT restort?” I cocked my head.

              “One of the best fine dining establishments and hotels in the Underground, and tonight, it’ll just be us.”

              _Brain. I see the gutter you’re trying to crawl into. **No**._

              We did _just_ eat. The food was absolutely divine, and if the chef didn’t already have a job, I probably would’ve begged him to come work at Chez Newmore for me. It was nice to be able to just sit back and eat at a restaurant without people recognizing me as the chef of another restaurant. I had angry owners and chefs accuse me of trying to scope out the competition on more than one occasion.

              “Did you enjoy tonight?” Asgore asked while politely snatching the bill of the table before I could contribute.

              “I did….Asgore….You don’t always have to keep paying for our dates you know.” I did enjoy the spoiled treatment of course, but I hated to be a constant expense.

              “I want to.” Asgore said smoothly, “If it bothers you, we can halve the bill of our next date.”

              “Or I could pay all of it?” I offered, “I don’t like our small token scale being so imbalanced.”

              “Olivia.” Asgore glared at me fondly.

              “Please? I want to.”

              “Alright. We’ll take turns then.” Asgore compromised.

              “Fine.” I pouted a little. Taking turns would mean I wouldn’t be able to make up the difference, “I guess that’s somewhat fair. How am I supposed to make up the rest of it though?” My impish side came out. Batting my eye lashes, I added, “Do you want me to make it up to you in other ways? Trust me when I say that’s a very viable option.”

              I think the flirty wink is what made him blush _so_ terribly.

              “I’m sorry.” I was still apologizing as we left MTT resort, “I didn’t mean to make you so embarrassed!”

              “It’s fine.” Asgore cleared his throat, “You simply keep surprising me. It’s a good thing….despite the many near heart attacks it’s given me.”

              “Guess you could say I’m a real heart stopper.” I winked, “Ooohhh…I need to send that one to Sissy to use against Sans.”

              “I think he’s already used it on her actually.” Asgore got a chuckle out my pout. He wrapped and arm around my waist to escort me back to where we’d be meeting up with Sans in about three or so hours.

              “I-“

              Color faded. The world took on a black hue, and my cyan SOUL glittered in my chest. The chilled feeling returned, and even the deep ruby flames surrounding Asgore and I didn’t help.

              “Again?” Asgore’s hand reached back and pulled his trident from its sheath within his back, “You are persistent creature!”

              The monster slowly hobbled its way out of the shadows for the first time.

              “What?” Asgore’s eyes widened. The hand around my waist gripped me almost painfully.

              The creature, that closely resembled a warped, melting skeleton in long, oily black robes, seemed as equally stunned as Asgore. It’s eyes flickered between Asgore and I with a look of confusion. The monster’s wariness also showed up in the deep orange and blue pools that formed in his eyes.

              The monster spoke in some language I couldn’t understand. It wasn’t quite case, but it didn’t sound anything close to human either. It continued to approach, speaking in that garbled language. The barrier of flames around Asgore and I dropped. His trident broke apart in his hand.

              “Asgore?” Fear led my hand to shoot out and clutch at his chest, “What’s wrong? Do you know this monster?”

              “I do….” Asgore’s voice was low and quiet. The monster said something to him, “No Gaster. The bitty you were healing isn’t here. He’s safe.”

              “Gaster?” I blinked, “As in…?”

              The monster pulled itself up to its full height. It would stand somewhere between Papyrus and Sans in height, but definitely had Papyrus’s thinner frame.

              “Gaster….W.D. Gaster…” Color returned as Asgore looked at the monster, “A monster that supposedly died years ago now stands before me. Gaster….What happened to you?”

              Asgore extended his empty hand out.

              Gaster broke down into tears.

              Be they created by fear, relief, or some mixture of both…it didn’t matter.

              Gaster took his old friend’s hand.


	21. Journey Home

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I own nothing. Full disclaimer/links can be found in Ch1
> 
> and I'm back a couple of hours early with a few chapters I've written. I hope you guys had a good holiday! :)

              Gaster found himself unable to decide whether or not he wanted to trust me. Asgore had to spend ten minutes getting Gaster to even begin to tolerate my presence before he could leave us to handle a couple of things. Asgore’s quiet, almost numb reaction to the whole reveal lead me to believe that he would probably break apart when one of his subjects wasn’t depending him, and while that would be an issue, the biggest issue was definitely going to be the brothers.

              Papyrus rarely spoke about his father at all- mostly claiming all of the “bad things” happened while he was still too young to remember it all. He was more than likely just repressing the memories however. My best friend could have entire conversations about his mother with ease despite her being murdered around the same time the “bad things” began to happen. Papyrus could practically draw a portrait of his mother- short like Sans with rounded features and a bit smile. Needless to say, I doubted that his memory could be that selective. _I guess no one would want to remember when their father went off the deep end before dying in a tragic laboratory accident._

              Sans only spoke about his father in a biting, critical, bitter voice that made my skin crawl. His pupils would vanish into the dark depths of his skull, and his voice would…change in some way. I would probably have been able to tell the exact difference if I could understand case and the way typical skeleton speaking patterns worked. The older skeleton brother scared me during those times though. Thus, I wasn’t exactly eager to ask. The way Sans described his father made him sound like some baby eating monster that deserved to be run over, but sometimes- _rarely­-_ he would remember some fond memory of his father and actually have a small smile.

              Gaster made a series of popping noises and static buzzing that drew my attention back to him. He stood- well more like slumped awkwardly because of his condition-far enough away to fit three Asgores between the two of us, and he’d been quiet while we waited for Asgore to return.

              “Yes?” I asked, assuming he was talking to me.

              Gaster made more noises I couldn’t quite comprehend.

              “Dr. Gaster-“ _I’m  being so formal._ The tall skeleton really just made me that anxious, “I’m afraid I can’t understand Case.”

              Gaster’s frown deepened. His body shrunk down a little bit. Then something seemed to click in his head. The dark matter around him drew lightly colored markings on the ground. _What the world? That’s like some kind of random font or…Wing Ding Gaster...Wing Dings?_

              I pulled out my phone and googled wing ding meanings. Crouching down with my phone in hand, I began to decipher what he was trying to tell me.

              “ **Papyrus and Sans. You know them?** ” was what he had asked.

              “I live with Papyrus actually.” I responded, “He’s my best friend.”

              “ **You haven’t hurt him?** ” The accusation in his eyes made me want to clock him.

              “I would _never_ hurt Papyrus.” I stood up and actually go in his face, “Ever. What part of “He’s my best friend” did you not understand?” _Now Olivia, that’s rude. He might’ve been sick like some of the other monsters, so his experiences with the surface could be negative._ Gritting my teeth to calm down some, I continued, forcing a smile, “Listen Dr. Gaster. I know what happened to your wife.” Gaster drooped down, “Sorry.” I apologized quickly, “I just….I don’t know what it’s like to lose your spouse, but even I can understand why that would make you hesitant around humans- especially after the hell we put monsters through. Just please understand that a good bit has changed since your accident. I adore Papyrus, and I can promise you that I’d never hurt him.”

              Gaster stared at the ground for a couple of minutes before slowly working out a reply.

              “ **Is he doing well?** ”

              “Very well.” I nodded, “He’s my sous chef at the restaurant I run. A lot of our customers love his food. The pie he came up with is really popular too.”

              Gaster smiled a little bit. He hesitated before writing.

              “ **Sans?** ”

              “Working as a scientist and um…” I blushed a little bit, “He’s actually dating my sister.”

              Gaster tensed and cocked his head so sharply I almost worried that he might snap his own neck.

              “ **A human?** ”

              “Yes.” The defensive desire to protect my sister rose up in my chest, “She’s a hardworking, loving woman who absolutely adores him and would do anything to protect him. She might actually try to punch you because of how much pain just saying your name hurts Sans.” Gaster recoiled at that, “She loves him more than anything. They’re even raising my nephew together. He’s happy.”

              “ **He is?** ”

              “Very much so.” I nodded.

              Gaster sat in stunned silence for the rest of our wait. _I hope I wasn’t **too** harsh…He is Asgore’s old friend after all. _

              “Olivia. Gaster.” Asgore strode over to us, a weary, somewhat pained smile on his face, “I’ve secured us a ride back to my home. I don’t believe it would be wise to just…”

              “Show up to Sissy’s house with him and say “Guess what Sans? The father you thought you had accidentally killed in an argument gone south is actually alive!”.” I smiled at him sweetly, trying to tease him a little bit just to relax his shoulders. It worked, “I don’t think that would go over so well. Sissy is out of town right now doing a favor for Leo right now too.”

              “Gaster needs to be examined anyways.” Asgore walked over and placed a hand on Gaster’s upper back, guiding him towards me as he continued to speak, “Apparently, he was a…Velour told me some human saying for an unknown male…”

              “John Doe?” I offered.

              “Yes.” Asgore nodded, “He was a John Doe at the la- hospital. No body recognized him because of the illness effecting us, and well….” Asgore’s laughter was sharp instead of sweet. He all but glared down at his old friend with a wounded expression on his face, “We all thought he was dead for the last ten years. Who would’ve even had the idea that dead man was still walking around?”

              Gaster sighed and looked down at the floor guiltily.

              “Asgore.” I wrapped my arms around his open arm and looked up at him. He looked down at me and sighed. _I will definitely be bringing this up later._ Rubbing calming circles into his arm, I decided to change the subject, “What are we doing now?”

              “We return to my home where Alphys will meet us and examine Gaster’s condition. From there…I have no idea.” Asgore looked back at the former royal scientist, “We need to tell the others at some point, and your sons must be some of the first informed about your return.” Gaster seemed to literally be trying to fade into nothingness, “Gaster, the two deserve to know.” The skeleton finally nodded slowly. Asgore’s arm wriggled free of my grasp to wrap around my waist. He tugged me up and nuzzled the top of my head affectionately, “I’m sorry that this didn’t finish accordingly.” He murmured.

              “Don’t apologize.” I scolded him, kissing one of his ears, “Let’s just get this all sorted out okay?”

              Asgore’s relieved sigh made his entire body shudder a bit.

              The trip back to Grayridge was extremely long and painfully quiet. The awkward journey was made worse when I had to fabricate a story to Papyrus.

              “Oh crud.” I winced, looking at the caller ID, “It’s Papyrus….”

              Asgore, who had borrowed one of the truckers the workers at Mt. Ebott used, looked over at me. Gaster leaned his head around to look at my phone. For a couple of seconds, none of us really seemed certain of what to do. _Well…um…I have an idea._

              I answered the phone mouthing “quiet” to the two men. I put it on speaker phone like I usually did if someone called me in the middle of the night.

              “Hello?” I yawned.

              “LIVI?” Papyrus sounded a little shocked and embarrassed, “IT’S…VERY…UM…LATE…ARE YOU?”

              “Oh…” I faked a slight sleep induced slur. _My rebellious phase has its payoff at last._ Deciding to just nail this down quickly, I continued, “Sorry. I should’ve called and told you that I wasn’t coming home tonight. I just got distracted. Things escalated a little quickly.” I chose to add a giggle because it seemed like something I would’ve done while telling Papyrus I just banged the king of the Underground.

              “Mom…” Harley’s voice answered me instead, “You just broke Papyrus a little bit. What’s going on?”

              “Sorry baby.” I stretched some to make the appropriate noises, “I just told Papyrus why I’m not home yet. I probably won’t be back until tomorrow morning in all honesty.”

              “We’re closed tomorrow anyways.” Harley more than likely shrugged, “We’ve gotta finish the remodeling in the front of the house though. Do you think you’ll be back in time?”

              “Of course!” I tsked, “I don’t have so little stamina you know.”

              “Moooommm….” Harley groaned, “Just….enjoy the rest of your evening, and _please_ never mention sex to Papyrus again.”

              “He’s not a kid Harley.” I warned him. _What is with everyone and treating Papyrus like he isn’t a young adult in his early 20s? Honestly, he’s more mature than people give him credit for_. I let out a ‘sleepy’ sigh and finished with a slight whine, “Fine. I’m too tired to argue. Tell Papyrus I’m sorry and go get some sleep. I love you baabby.”

              “I love you too.” Harley chuckled, “I’ll let you go now. It sounds like you need the sleep more than I do. Good night.”

              I hung up the phone and dropped it down in to the cup holder.

              “Jeez. I hate lying to them, but- Asgore? Ooh.. Sorry. It was the only thing I could think of that would get them to leave us alone quickly.” I blushed.

              “I can see the reasoning behind it.” Asgore said, “I just…well…you’re very good at lying.”

              “Don’t you know that the people with the prettiest smiles can lie the best?” _Everyone has to believe I’m happy and sunny all the time after all._ I looked back to check on Gaster. The skeleton scientist had sunk back in the seat with a somber, but happy expression on his face, “Was it nice? Hearing your son’s voice again?” Gaster nodded, closing his eyes, “Good.”

              Expectedly, it took us a long time to get back to Grayridge. It was around 3:54 in the morning when we reentered the city. The familiar buildings and lights woke me up from the lovely nap I had been enjoying. I was just relieved to be back home. A lot of things needed to be handled delicately over the next few days, and Grayridge was just the place to get things done privately.

              “Would you mind texting Alphys for me?” Asgore questioned. He used the rearview mirror to check on Gaster, “He’s asleep.”

              “Sorry you’ve been stuck doing all of the driving.” I blushed, “I meant to switch off with you at some point.”

              “It’s fine. I’m too anxious to sleep anyways.” Asgore’s hands were actually somewhat warping the steering wheel, “I…”

              “Don’t know how to react?” I reached out and tugged one of his hands off of the wheel and tried my best to cradle it in mine, “I don’t think anyone would know how to react if their supposedly dead close friend just reappeared in their life without warning.” I double checked that Gaster was asleep before asking in a low whisper, “How are you honestly feeling about all of this Asgore?”

              “How poorly does it reflect on my character that the main thing I’m feeling right now is anger?” Asgore’s hand shook in mine, “We mourned him for almost a decade if not more. Alphys had to take over some of his hardest research because he was gone, and Sans and Papyrus were permanently scarred by all of it…and…I…was left alone on my throne.” Asgore growled loud enough I was worried he might wake up Gaster, “He had better have a good reason for causing everyone so much agony. The Underground wore black for two years after his passing. I won’t forgive him if his excuse is paper thin.”

              “I’m sorry.” It was the only thing I could think to say. I kissed the back of his hand, “I’m _so_ sorry.”

              “Thank you.” He sighed, stopping at a red light. He looked down at me, “I’m surprised you’re holding yourself together after all of this.”

              “Oh trust me. I’m gearing up for a panic attack in my bathroom later.” I laughed. The anxiety bubbling inside me threatened to spill out, but… “Someone has to be strong for you.” I kissed the back of his hand again, “Don’t worry about it.” I said before he could voice his worries, “You’ve taken on some of my burdens, so please let me do the same for you. I want to.”

              Asgore didn’t say a thing. His hand merely squeezed mine affectionately.

              Dr. Alphys must’ve been hopped up on ten cups of coffee if she managed to stay up that late without a distraction. The reptilian scientist stared at Gaster in Asgore’s living room for around three minutes before pulling him into a tight hug.

              “D-Dr. Gaster!” Her voice couldn’t decide if she wanted to cry or laugh, “Oh my…you’re…alive… after all of this time?” She pulled back. The shocked, relieved, sad face Gaster wore made my heart go out to him more than a little bit. Dr. Alphys had tears in her eyes, “I’m so glad….You have no idea how… I was so worried that it was the modification to the determination extractor I added that….”

              Gaster’s string of noise made her look sad and happy at the same time.

              “I see….it was the circuitry upgrade you did…”

              “Hmm….” Asgore sighed and rubbed a paw across his face.

              “What?” I questioned him while Dr. Alphys went on to examine Gaster.

              “Sans and his father got into an argument in laboratory. Gaster hadn’t even noticed the two leaving him to live in Snowdin, and that made Sans furious. He slammed his hand down on a panel that busted, causing a nearby machine to short circuit and emit an almost lethal pulse of determination….I suppose that explains why Sans’s HP never recovered- even after three years of treatment.”

              “I thought that monsters couldn’t survive extreme doses of determination?” Sissy had mentioned that to me once or twice. A couple of monsters who had been exposed to determination in the Underground for unknown reasons were some of the first to recover on the surface. They had melted, drooping forms, but they still lived with their families, “Is that why he’s so…?”

              “More than likely.” Asgore nodded, “I’m surprised he even survived… The determination extractor was built to hold massive amounts of determination at a time until proper storage could be built. The meltdown set everyone back eight months in the lab….”

              I guessed it was a good thing that I already knew a good bit about the experiments done in the attempt to free monsters from the Underground. Otherwise, all of this new knowledge would’ve driven me up the wall or scared me out of the house. _I still can’t believe that this is all happening…_ The new anxiety in my stomach roiled and hissed. I somehow managed to keep my trembling under control. Asgore didn’t need to worry about me right then.

              I guided Asgore over to the large chair he favored when we had tea in the living room instead of the kitchen. He sank down into it and stared at Gaster and Dr. Alphys. The shock and denial seemed to finally be kicking in for him, so I wrapped my arms around his shoulders and pulled his head to rest on my chest. Asgore sagged against me, almost in defeat. Rubbing the back of his neck, I murmured soft nothings to him in French. He probably couldn’t understand a single thing I was saying, but the sweet words seemed to help him calm down.

              “I think I figured it out.” Dr. Alphys declared. We all focused on her, “After the determination extractor short circuited, it tore open a pocket in the void and trapped Gaster in an area of Waterfall for years because the determination in him prevented him from teleporting. He managed to get out of his prison shortly after some of us fell ill and began to help lost bitties before falling ill himself. The medical treatments helped push out the rest of the hostile determination, but um…your body won’t recover past this point Dr. Gaster. I-I’m afraid…the damage is d-done. You should have access t-to your abilities though.”

              Gaster made a sad, somber noise.

              “I’m sorry.” Dr. Alphys sighed, “I wish I had better news…but…”

              “It’s better than being dead.” Asgore’s head rose from my chest. He stood up and crossed his arms, “Will his condition worsen any?”

              “No. I used some of Josephine’s determination-“ _When did Sissy donate her determination to some of Dr. Alphys’s experiements?_ “- during his treatments, so he’s going to be fine. Her determination is very stable after all.”

              “Good.” Asgore didn’t voice the silent worry that must’ve crossed his mind. _How terrible would it have been if Gaster died after this?_ Asgore closed his eyes in thought, “How are we going to tell the others? Especially, Sans and Papyrus.”

              No one had an answer for that.

              Gaster was back after ten or more years of being presumed dead by everyone who cared about him. This was the kind of situation you’d expect to find in some soap opera on TV or some raunchy bodice ripper novel. How were we supposed to respond? There was no way in hell Sans and Papyrus would just smile and say “Hey Dad!” before pulling him into a tight hug. Given Sans’s typical reaction to the slightest mention of his father, this wasn’t going to end well.

              “Um…” _Oh Sissy….I wish you were here._ She’d probably be able to figure something out, and Sans only really listened to _her_ sometimes. There weren’t many people who had that calming effect she did….but….Some would be here soon, “In two days, my Granny and sister Nadia are coming to visit. Papyrus and I are keeping the restaurant open a little bit later for a private dinner. Sans will be there with Greyson. Granny might be able to help smooth things over some or help get the ball rolling at least.”

              “Do you think that could work?” Asgore raised a brow, “I know that Mrs. Arietta is a skilled negotiator, but this will be…”

              “M-Messy.” Dr. Alphys finished.

              “We can’t just keep him hidden in one of your closets for the rest of his life.” I pointed out, “Besides, Papyrus and Sans deserve to know….hell…probably more than anymore else. The longer we sit on it, the more infuriated Sans is going to be.”

              Gaster interjected himself into the conversation. Asgore didn’t like his response at _all_.

              “She’s just trying to help.” Asgore warned him, “Her grandmother _is_ a skilled communicator, and Olivia herself has taken on many burdens and risks in her attempts to help monsters- Papyrus in particular. She also has a valid point on Sans’s temperament when this all comes to light. We need to address this as quickly as we possibly can.”

              “I should probably start telling some of the more secretive monsters.” Dr. Alphys added, “To try and soften the blow as much as we can. Otherwise, this will go south too fast for us to salvage it.”

              Gaster fell silent before reluctantly nodding.

              “I’d better call Granny.” I sighed, “She needs to know about all of this beforehand.”

              I stepped out to call her. I looked back into the living room to find that Asgore and Dr. Alphys had sat down on either side of Gaster. _He’s going to have a lot to adjust to._

              “ _Hello?_ ” Granny asked, “ _Olivia? Isn’t it too early in the morning for you to be calling me? What’s wrong? Do I need to call Joey?”_

              “ _No.”_  I interrupted her before she could continue. It was weird speaking in French, but at least she wasn’t speaking in German- that was the language I had the hardest time deciphering, “ _I do need a favor however.”_

              “ _A favor? Of course sweetheart.”_

              I bit my lip before spilling everything out in a rush of garbled French and English. Granny only paused me once or twice to clarify a few things. By the end of the story, I was curled up behind the buttercup bushes under Asgore’s living room window crying more than a little bit.

              _“I don’t know what I’m doing Granny.”_ I sniffled, “ _I just want to help, but how do you help in a situation like this? I’m scared that something is going to go wrong.”_

              “ _Sweetheart. Shhh…It’s okay. I’ll help darling. It’s okay.”_ Granny soothed me, _“Don’t worry. Granny will be there to help.”_

              “ _Thank you.”_ I tried my eyes, “ _You don’t know how much that means to me. I’m sorry that I’m causing you so much trouble.”_

              “ _You’re still young Olivia. No one expects you to have all the answers. I’m old, and I don’t have all the answers.”_ Granny clucked her tongue, chastising me gently, “ _I’ll do what I can darling.”_

              The Arietta part of my family really made up for the shittiness of the Newmore part of my family sometimes.


	22. Failed

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I own nothing. Full disclaimer/links can be found in Ch1
> 
> And anyone who's read F&S will immediately spot the connections.

              Dr. Alphys had continued to examine Gaster and discovered that parts of his memory were just gone or foggy at best. Surprisingly, the ones predating the incident were the clearest, and the ones more recent had the most inconsistencies. He didn’t even remember attacking me the first time around. Gaster just remembered trying to help a bitty then blacking out and waking up in the Underground. From there, his memory kept wavering. Time blurred together. Sometimes he would think he was back in the Closed Barrier period of monster history instead of the Open Barrier period. The slight dips in his memory made it difficult to really plan things because he would sometimes forget parts of or an entire conversation. Thus, the burden of making the reintroduction go as smoothly as possible fell entirely on Asgore, Granny, and I.

_I don’t think I’ve been this nervous before._

              My feet couldn’t stay still. My hands kept trembling. It had progressively gotten worse as the dinner grew closer and closer. Granny, Asgore, and I discussed how everything was supposed to go over and over and over the past few days. The constant conversation didn’t help me calm down at all because we all _knew_ that it wouldn’t’ go as smoothly in real life as it did in our heads.

              Lace butted his head against my nose to get my attention.

              “H-Huh?” I blinked and realized that Willoughby, Lace, and Harley were in front of me. I could feel Hiro and Snooze were resting on the back of my neck and head, “Did I doze back off again?”

              “yes mimi.” Snooze rubbed my head, “you said you were going to get up ten minutes ago.”

              “Sorry.” Sleep had avoided me all night, “I haven’t been sleeping well.”

              “wE kNoW.” Willoughby traced my eyebrow with one hand, “i SlEeP iN hErE rEmEmBeR?”

              “Have I been keeping you guys up? I’m sorry.” I slowly began to pick myself up. The bitties all backed up, allowing me to sit up without crushing any of them, “I’ve just been…nervous lately.”

              “is everything okay mama?” Hiro pouted, climbing up my shirt some to get a good look at my face, “you’re not usually like this…you’ve begun to worry the marvelous baby blue! please tell me what’s wrong.”

              “I…um….you guys will know soon enough.” Lying to them was beginning to really wear on my conscience. How someone can just keep lying and lying and lying was beyond me. I’d only been doing it for a little while, but I genuinely felt like shit about it, “How late am I?”

              “Papyrus already left to go open up.” Harley answered, “He decided to let you sleep in some more….Are you getting sick?”

              “No.” I shook my head, hurrying to get up and get ready. I placed Hiro on the bed and began to hunt for my work clothes, “Jeez Papyrus….he should’ve just woke me up.”

              “he’s worried.” Snooze defended him, “you’ve been…off lately ever since the review….”

              “I swear that’s not what’s going on.” _I’m not that sensitive guys. The review did honestly piss me the fuck off though._ I bit back any complaint though. Considering what was about to go down, I didn’t want to snap at them, “I’m sorry. Hopefully, what happens will be a good thing.”

              “oLiViA…yOu’Re ScArInG mE.” Willoughby frowned.

              “It’ll be a good thing…hopefully.” I smiled at them, “Once this all kind of blows over, we’ll have a nice day of just relaxing and fun okay?”

              The bitties all shared looks of disbelief and concern. Ultimately, they didn’t press the issue. I think they could realize that I was a couple of more questions away from crumbling and shutting down. _I just want this to be over. I really just **need** this to be over. Dammit. _

              I was shaky the entire day. My work performance didn’t decline any. Perfectionism instilled in me by my teachers ensured that. Anxiety kept building in me though. Tonight was more than likely going to suck cactus balls, and there really wasn’t anything I could do to avoid it. The longer Papyrus and Sans didn’t know….the more painful it would be later.

              ”LIVI?” Papyrus patted on my back as we began to close everything up, “SHOULD WE TAKE YOU TO A DOCTOR? DO WE NEED TO CALL IET? SHE’D PROBABLY RACE BACK IF SHE HEARD ABOUT YOUR MOOD…”

              “I’m fine Papyrus.” I poked his cheek, “I’m perfectly fine- just a bit nervous about tonight. You know how family drama is.”

              “NOT REALLY. SANS AND I DON’T REALLY FIGHT THAT OFTEN. THE GREAT PAPYRUS MUST KEEP A GOOD RELATIONSHIP FOR HIS BROTHER- DESPITE HOW LAZY HIS BROTHER IS.” Papyrus was so proud of his brother.

              _Oh god. Tonight is **really** going to hurt. _

              Papyrus had been kind enough to bring my change of clothes for me, so I didn’t have to sprint back to the apartment for clean clothing. The bitties buzzed with excitement about seeing Granny again while Papyrus began to plan what he was going to talk to his brother about. Everything about what was happening was normal- except for me. I was the only one who seemed more than a little dim.

              “mama!” Hiro hopped up and down to get my attention, “it’s asgo! he’s calling you.”

              “Thank you sweetie.” I kissed his cheek and picked up my phone, “Asgo?” If I didn’t use the nickname, they really would’ve noticed.

              “How are you doing?” Asgore’s low voice calmed me more than any of the mantras I chanted in my head did.

              “I’m nervous.” I whispered, “Very nervous…”

              “I am too.” Asgore’s laughter shook, “G- _He’s_ been pacing back and forth all day.”

              “If I didn’t have work, I probably would be too.” I sighed, “The bitties have noticed my behavior….Papyrus is getting worried too.”

              “Tonight’s the night. It’ll all work or blow up in our face…There’s not much else we can really do about it.” I really wished Asgore was beside me. I could’ve hugged him then.

              “It’ll be okay.” Remaining optimistic became a top priority. Tonight would crash and burn quickly if we stayed so negative, “It’ll be okay…okay?”

              “Alright.” Asgore took a steadying breaths, “You need to get ready for your sister and grandmother. I’ll meet you there once Mrs. Arietta contacts me.”

              “Okay…Um…Love ya big guy.” I hung up, bright red. _Oh god. Did that actually come out of my mouth!? My nerves are going to end up killing me before anything else does!_

              “Mom?” Harley teleported onto my shoulder, “What’s wrong? Don’t tell me everything is fine.”

              “I um…I just told Asgore ‘love ya’.” I squeaked.

              “Uhh….” Harley began to laugh, “Oh my stars, you actually….ha!”

              “I hate you so much.” I flicked the back of his head, “This is so embarrassing.”

              “What did he say back?” Harley questioned.

              “I hung up before he could respond….” My hair still needed to be tamed, so I kept my hands busy doing that instead of digging my nails into my palms out of fear, “Oooohhh gooodddd….”

              “He probably won’t mind. I mean…you didn’t just say “I love you”. A lot of people just say things like ‘love ya’ without it being so….heavy.” Harley patted the side of my head comfortingly, “He might not have even noticed it.”

              _He noticed it. He definitely noticed it._

              “What did you come back here for?” I opted to change the subject.

              “Granny and Nadia are here. We’re still waiting on Sans to show up with Greyson though.” Harley explained.

              “Ah crud!” I winced, hurrying to finish getting ready, “Jeez.”

              Papyrus had sat Nadia and Granny down at one of our round tables. The three of them chatted about some random thing while Cesar crankily allowed Nadia to hold him close. The boss tolerated her clinginess with gritted teeth, but I could tell that the affection did warm him at least a little bit.

              “Olivia.” Nadia spotted me first. Her eyes noticed my slight disarray in nanoseconds, “What’s wrong? Are you sick?”

              “No, no.” I sat Harley down on the table. He went over to where Willoughby and Lace were silently staring towards Nadia and Cesar, “I just haven’t been sleeping well. That’s all.”

              “Oh really?” Granny raised a brow. Hiro was climbing up her leather sleeve to get to her shoulder. _Does he always have to be so fiercely independent?_ She, of course, knew what was making me so nervous, but she couldn’t let it slip this early, “I’m sorry to hear that. Do you think you need to see a doctor?”

              “No Granny.” I caught Hiro when he missed a grab and began to slide down her arm, “I’ll be fine once I get some sleep. Anyways, Papyrus?” I nudged the taller skeleton with my elbow, “Where’s your brother? Is he running behind?”

              “YES.” Papyrus grumbled, “HE FORGOT THAT IT WAS TONIGHT…IET HAD TO REMIND HIM, AND SHE’S NOT EVEN _IN_ GRAYRIDGE!”

              “well, i have been busy with work.” Sans responded, appearing from a distortion field with seven bitties, a flower monster, and a baby in tow, “sorry though.”

              “We wouldn’t have been _so_ late if a certain flower had remembered to pack Greyson’s things properly.” Cyan cut a glare Flowey. The flower hissed at him, tightening his grip on Snuggle before ducking behind the meek.

              “He’s such a jackass.” Sunshine sighed, rubbing his temples.

              “You’re just mad because your little boyfriends aren’t here.” Flowey groused.

              “I miss Daddy too actually.” Tinsel pouted, “When are he and GJ coming home again?”

              “soon.” Atlantic answered him quietly, “supposedly.”

              “lia…” December pouted. Idjit patted his back despite having tears of his own.

              “j-jojo w-wi-i-ill b-be ba-a-ack s-soon.” Idjit insisted.

              _Oh god…uuuggghhh…._

              “BROTHER! I’M GLAD YOU FINALLY MADE IT.” Papyrus pulled out a chair for Sans to make his life a little bit easier, “NOW OLIVIA AND I CAN BRING OUT THE FOOD.”

              “Yeah…” I shot Granny a ‘not yet’ look before smiling down at the various bitties scattered across the table, “We’ve even got some ice cream for you guys. Think that’ll make you feel a little better December? Idjit?” The two did perk up just a hair.

              Somehow, I managed to get all of the plates and food to the table without any issues. Sans noted my change of attitude as well, but Granny deftly changed the conversation to focus on the brothers and how they were doing. Papyrus was happy about how things had been improving since the critic had lost all credibility. He also went on about beginning to learn basketball from some local kids. Sans began to add that the research he was working on with Dr. Alphys had reached new heights and happily reported that Greyson was doing well.

              Everything was calm.

              Everything was normal.

              We got to dessert when Granny decided to text Asgore. Now would be the best time. Everyone was somewhat peaceful and serene. There wasn’t any real tension in the air. Nadia and Cesar had to leave early because of an early morning business meeting, so Granny and I had to stall for time, slowly eating our dessert and keeping the brothers talking. Flowey quickly became suspicious. He didn’t say anything though- which made me even more nervous. Despite being extremely immature at times, the small flower had an eye for trouble, and he knew that something was about to go down. Hell, he even took Greyson and Snuggle to a far corner of the restaurant with Idjit and December under the guise of looking at the art and letting Greyson nap while the rest of us talked. _I guess he’s not as sadistic as I thought he was….._

              “anyways, do either of you know of a gemstone newmore _really_ likes?” Sans questioned, not caring at all that Atlantic and Tinsel had taken up seats on his head.

              “She’s not fond of gems in particular honestly. You’d be better off getting things like black tourmaline and tiger’s eye.” Granny tapped her chin, “Am I missing one Olivia?”

              “Blood stone is good too.” I paused, “Maybe through in some turquoise….Are you getting her a necklace? I know a really good place that does jewelry.”

              “Not a necklace.” Sans shook his head, “I just discovered that apparently humans have _two_ rings associated with marriage.”

              “AN ENGAGEMENT RING AND A WEDDING RING…BROTHER…” Papyrus gave him a flat look, “DID YOU NOT PAY ATTENTION AT ALL TO THE FEW HUMAN CHANNELS WE HAD IN THE UNDERGROUND!?”

              “ehhh….” Sans rubbed the back of his neck, “no. i really wasn’t happy with the ring i got her because it just didn’t…feel…like _us_ , so i went back and learned about all of this complicated human stuff. really, it was a tiresome day.”

              “He’s going to use the ring as her engagement ring instead of the wedding ring. He kind of wants to keep that a surprise though.” Cyan elaborated further.

              “A special ring for a special woman.” Sunshine glowed with happiness.

              That was the last bit of joy that came in that evening.

              Asgore entered the restaurant.

              “YOUR MAJESTY!” Papyrus stood up. Sans blinked at him. Unconsciously, his hands curled up like he wanted to protect Greyson, but he forgot that Flowey had the baby, “WHAT A SURPRISE TO SEE YOU! WHAT BRINGS YOU…YOU LOOK SAD.” Papyrus frowned.

              “I’m afraid the reason I’m here is sad.” Asgore said quietly, “But it could become happy.”

              “what’s going on?” Sans’s, sharper than I gave him credit for, looked at Granny and I suspiciously, “asgore?”

              “SANS!” Papyrus scolded his brother, “BE MORE RESPECT-“

              A string of case cut Papyrus off.

              Both of the brothers froze. Papyrus’s jovial, if annoyed face melted into one of childlike terror. Sans’s eye went deep, and his hands curled hard enough that they almost cracked. Sans stood up fast enough to knock his chair away. His left eye exploded with blue magic. The bitties curled up near Granny as Gaster quietly slinked around Asgore’s larger frame.

              There was silence between the family members.

              “Oh shit.” Flowey’s vines quickly gathered up _all_ of the bitties. None of them resisted. Flowey held Greyson close and looked between everyone, “Fuck. Fuck. Fuck….” He looked at me. I nodded to the back and mouthed ‘office’. He was gone quickly.

              “PAPA?” Papyrus’s frame almost went limp, “IS THAT….?”

              “what the hell is going on here.” Sans’s voice had that sharp, electrical tone that I only heard from the skeleton brothers when they were truly _furious_. Sans’s body thrummed with magical energy, “is this some kind of joke?”

              “Sans.” Granny stood up and held her hands up placating, “Please calm down sweetheart. You should take deep breaths.”

              “PAPA…PAPA….DIED…HE DIED. HE DIED YEARS AGO.” Papyrus stumbled back. I had _never_ seen him this shaken. It was like watching a titan fall- unexpected and truly terrifying, “HOW..?”

              “The accident didn’t kill him Papyrus.” I quietly explained, “It just trapped him somewhere he couldn’t get out of for the past few ye-“

              “Oh?” Sans turned that horrifying gaze to face me, “You’ve _known_ about this… _how_ long? _How_ long have you been keeping this quiet huh? H u h? I s  t h I s  f u n n y  t o  y o u?”

              “No!” I held my hands up defensively, “It’s not funny at all! We knew you’d react like this though. Please just listen Sans!”

              “you’ve got some nerve.” His voice became scarily distorted. Gaster said something, “shut it old man! shut it!” Gaster then said something that made the magic in Sans’s eye die faster than I could’ve ever imagine, “you….you….” Sans gritted his teeth, “fuck!” Sans stormed out of the restaurant, shoving past his father and Asgore, “fucking hell…” His hand had gone into his pocket to retrieve a phone. A quiet, bitter sob was the last thing we heard before he disappeared outside.

              “Sans!” Asgore called out to him. Gaster merely caught his wrist and murmured something, “But Gaster…Alright. If you think that’s what he needs.” Asgore looked at Papyrus. He took a couple of steps towards the tall skeleton, “Papyrus? Are you still here with us?”

              “PAPA IS ALIVE?” Papyrus slumped against the table. His hands went up to his eyes. Orange tears began to fall down his face, “NO…THAT’S NOT RIGHT…THAT’S NOT…NO…THAT CAN’T BE…THAT WOULD MEAN THAT BROTHER LIED TO ME AND HE DOESN’T LIE…HE…NO…. NO…”

              “Papyrus.” I quickly pulled the heartbroken skeleton into a hug, “It’s okay honey….shhhhh….”

              _This went **worse** than we could’ve ever expected. _

              In the end, after more than a few phone calls from a stunned Sissy and Papyrus’s worried ex-boyfriend Mettaton, Granny gathered up Sissy’s bitties, Greyson, and Flowey. All of the bitties seemed just as shell shocked as the brothers had been. Granny told Asgore and I that she would look after all of them until Sissy returned to Grayridge with Sans.

              “Papyrus?” Harley rubbed circles into his back while visibly, unashamedly staring at Gaster, “It’s okay pal.”

              “mama?” Hiro was crying because Papyrus was, “is he really…?” I nodded, and he just cried more.

              “good father.” Snooze happily walked right on up to Gaster like an old friend. The sleepy pouted when Gaster looked at him, “did your mind go out the window again? you rescued me when i almost drowned in waterfall.” Recognition flickered in Gaster’s eyes, “you do remember me!” Snooze grinned.

              “gOoD fAtHeR?” Willoughby turned away from where he was trying to comfort an anxious Lace, “tHe GoOd FaThEr…Is….?”

              “mmhmm.” Snooze nodded and looked at Gaster, “do you remember loulou? you tried to heal him.”

              Gaster looked at the heavily scarred bitty, narrowing his eyes until the pieces clicked together. He nodded, looking more than a little relieved. _I guess he’s just happy that some people are genuinely happy to see him…._

              “PAPA HELPED YOU?” Papyrus rubbed at his eyes.

              “yup.” Snooze nodded, “he’s the good father!”

              Papyrus and Gaster locked gazes. Papyrus was the first to look away, falling into another fit of tears. Asgore patted Gaster’s back in an almost brotherly like way.

              _Well….this….this….I…. definitely bit off more than I could chew._


	23. Actions Have Consequences

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I own nothing. Full disclaimer/links can be found in Ch1
> 
> This probably where some people will probably dislike how the sister conflict is resolved, but *shrugs* my characters, my story.

              Sans had been completely and utterly unwilling to even _discuss_ Gaster after he and Sissy returned to Grayridge. He stopped by the apartment to check on Papyrus, but he absolutely refused to step inside once he realized that Gaster was inside. Papyrus, who had been struggling to understand his father’s story, visibly looked relieved at the break. Sissy slid into the apartment as Papyrus went out to speak with Sans. _Granny must be looking after Flowey, Greyson, and her bitties._

              Sissy paused the instant she saw Gaster. She looked him up and down with the cruelest pair of eyes I had ever seen on her. That icy gaze also flickered over Asgore and I, making me feel _really_ small and pathetic.

              “Did you _honestly_ think that just _dumping_ Gaster on them was going to go well at all?” Sissy finally snapped, “I can expect this kind of thinking from Olivia because of how young she is, but you _two-“_ Sissy gestured to Asgore and Gaster, “-have no excuse whatsoever!”

              “Well forgive me for not having all the answers!” I stood up. Sissy didn’t even flinch at how angry I was. The bitties all curled around Papyrus, “I’m sorry I’m not able to just wiggle my fingers and fix everything or magically make old pains go away.”

              “I’m not blaming you-“

              “It was _my_ idea Sissy. I’m sorry I’m just _so_ young.” I spat, “Dammit….this is where you just come in and make everything go swimmingly isn’t it? Like _always._ Must really suck to have to keep cleaning up after your normal, untalented, unskilled sister, but I will _not_ let you take this out on Asgore and Gaster.”

              “Olivia, you are taking this whole thing and twisting it around.” Sissy’s warning voice would’ve made me cower in my house slippers a few years ago. Now, it just made me want to hit her. _Where does she get off with this holier than thou attitude!?_ I glared at her, but she just gave me this flat, disappointed look that made the inner child in me sink down and cry a little bit, “This isn’t about me swooping in and saving the day. Sans literally all but fell apart earlier. He isn’t going to just perk back up after one conversation Olivia. Hell, it’ll probably be _months_ before he’s even willing to talk to his old man.” Gaster cringed, “You heard me geezer. He’s still got more than a few bones to pick with you.”

              “You don’t understand what’s been going on.” Asgore slid in, trying his best to not show how intimidating Sissy was really being.

              “You’re right. I don’t know what’s going on because _someone_ -“ She glared directly at me, and my defensiveness completely died under that gaze. I sat back down, shoulders sagging and eyes watery, “- didn’t bother to let me in on something that directly affects the man I love. I’m not saying there was a right way to do this. There probably isn’t. You guys sure as hell found the _wrong_ way though. _SO,_ someone better started explaining before I _really_ lose my temper.”

              Asgore quietly and calmly explained everything that was going on starting from the very first encounter we had with Gaster. Sissy listened with a placid look on her face that didn’t even change when Papyrus dragged a reluctant Sans into the room and the smaller skeleton latched onto her like a lifeline. Asgore decided to start from the top to just fill things in for Sans. I was surprised that Sissy wasn’t screaming in agony with how hard Sans was clinging to her, but she just acted like it was perfectly normal.

              “So what you’re telling me is this: Gaster is really alive. True, he has a bad short term memory, but that’s fixable with some magic.” Sissy looked Gaster, Asgore, and I, “And you decided that the _best_ way to reintroduce everyone to him after years of mourning and grief was to just toss him into a dinner with his sons?”

              “We had hoped that Mrs. Arietta could help corral the situation.” Asgore sighed.

              “She’s not a miracle worker you know.” Sissy huffed, “Well….Sans?”

              The short skeleton said nothing. The black depths glaring daggers into his father was more than enough of an answer for Sissy.

              “Fine. You,” She pointed at Gaster, “Are not welcome in our home, and that’s that.” Then Sissy, who had _never_ looked at me like I was pathetic, trained her eyes, cold and disappointed, on me and said, “Since you seem so eager to snap at family members who didn’t even do a damn thing, I’ll text Nadia and tell her that we should just leave you alone because that’s what you want right? God forbid we want to help our little sister after all. Fuck, where the hell did I go wrong with you?” Sissy shook her head and looked at my bitties, “You guys and Papyrus are-as always- welcome to visit any time. Alright, let’s go Sans. We stay here any longer and you’ll snap my back in half.” She patted the back of his arms comfortingly. The disappeared in a jagged line of distortion that swallowed them whole.

              _What have I done?_

_**WHAT HAVE I DONE?**_

              My mind raced back years and years to ever locate a time where Sissy had ever looked at me that way, _spoken_ to me in that way. I couldn’t find a single memory similar to this one. This was the first time in my entire life that Sissy wasn’t _stern_ with me because I did something wrong. She was actually hurt by what I said. The woman with skin of iron had looked so wounded when I lost my temper over irrational things.

              “mama?” Hiro rubbed the back of my hand, “mama? you’re crying.”

              “H-Huh?” I blinked and realized that my tears had begun to fall, “Oh…”

              “Olivia?” Asgore’s arm wrapped around me. His other paw gently wiped away my tears, “I’m sorry that this…didn’t go as well as we had hoped.”

              “It’s not your fault.” I sniffled, picking up Hiro and rubbing his cheeks with my thumbs, “I’m not crying over what you think I’m crying about.”

              Asgore looked ready to ask me what I was actually crying about when Papyrus finally spoke for the first time around Gaster since their horrible first meeting.

              “WHY DIDN’T YOU COME FORWARD SOONER?” Papyrus asked. He looked at Gaster, “IT’S BEEN- A _LONG_ TIME....SO LONG…” Papyrus shook his head. Lace cradled one of his hands comfortingly. Harley sat on his lap, glaring at Gaster like the older skeleton had kicked a baby.

              Gaster responded to Papyrus, his injured body roiling and fading in and out with distress. Papyrus listened with only Lace’s grasp on his hand holding him together. Papyrus didn’t say a word which seemed to only make Gaster get more anxious. _Really, we’re lucky that Papyrus didn’t just run off to go with Sans._ I knew that Sans had more than likely offered him such an escape, so it spoke volumes that he didn’t take the easy way out.

              “I think we should give them space…” I whispered to Asgore, hiding the words under Gaster’s erratic speech patterns, “Kitchen?” Asgore nodded.

              “LIVI?” Papyrus noticed me stand up right away, “WHERE ARE YOU GOING?”

              “To the kitchen.” I held Hiro with one hand and reached out to pat Papyrus’s head, “To get us all something to drink. I don’t think any of us really slept after last night, so coffee would do us some good.”

              “…” Papyrus looked up at me, “ARE YOU LYING AGAIN?”

              _Ouch_.

              “…I thought it might be best to give you two some space.” I answered honestly. _It’s going to take a long time to get his trust again._

              “PLEASE DON’T.” Papyrus wrung his hands together nervously, “PLEASE.”

              I sat back down immediately.

              Gaster began to speak again, but Papyrus grew frustrated.

              “STOP.” He held up a hand, “STOP TALKING IN CASE. YOU’RE DOING IT JUST TO KEEP OLIVIA OUT OF THE CONVERSATION.”

              _He is?_ I looked at Asgore for confirmation. He reluctantly nodded. _Well that’s just lovely._

              “I’m sorry.” Gaster apologized to Papyrus. His voice still had the warped, crackling quality to it because of the damage to his vocal chords, “Papyrus….I…” He opened his mouth to continue, but closed it after a couple of seconds, “I can only apologize so much.” He finished after thinking about it for a little bit.

              “I’M NOT THE ONE YOU SHOULD BE APOLOGIZING TO.” Papyrus ran his free hand across the back of his head, “I DON’T REMEMBER MUCH ABOUT MAMA’S DEATH OR WHAT HAPPENED AFTERWARDS, BUT MY BROTHER DOES.”

              “He doesn’t exactly seem eager to speak with me Papyrus.” Gaster sounded the part of a frustrated, worried parent.

              “HE ISN’T.” Papyrus agree, gathering up Lace and Harley. He looked at where Snooze and Willoughby were sitting on Gaster. With one hand, he picked them both up, “AND RIGHT NOW… I NEED SOME TIME TO THINK ABOUT ALL OF THIS. PLEASE LEAVE.” Papyrus left us after that.

              Gaster sank down. He went back into speaking Case as he murmured something that made Asgore sit up straight.

              “No.” Asgore said firmly, “Do not say things like that Gaster. It’s still raw right now. Give it some time to settle.”

              Gaster didn’t look willing to believe that at all.

              “I’m going to go check on Papyrus.” I told Asgore. My eyes cut towards Gaster, “You should probably take him back to your house.”

              “And you?” Asgore’s eyes told me that he hadn’t forgotten the burst of tears from earlier.

              “I’ll call you later.” I promised him, kissing his cheek.

              _Dammit._

              I bit my lip hard enough to make it bleed as I saw Asgore and Gaster out of the apartment. There was nothing but silence in the usually warm, welcoming home. Icy distrust and barbed doubt filled the empty spaces my royal screw up had caused. Guilt crushed my heart under foot before moving on to rip apart my mind. _I’ll be having nightmares about this for a while won’t I?_

              Gathering up the last few bits of my fraying nerves I had, I cradled a somewhat calmed Hiro in one hand and knocked on the door to Papyrus’s bedroom. There wasn’t an immediate response, but Harley eventually tugged the door open with his magic. Papyrus sat on his race car bed in an almost meditative position.

              “Papyrus?” I didn’t step into his room.

              “COME IN.”

              Timidly, I shuffled over to his bed and sat down, putting Hiro down on the bed to let the little guy go speak with Harley and Snooze. Papyrus and I sat in silence as the bitties whispered to each other on the far side of the bed. I couldn’t even look up at him. _Is this how I kill our relationship?_

              “WHY DIDN’T YOU TELL ME BEFOREHAND?” Papyrus finally asked, “DID YOU NOT TRUST THE GREAT PAPYRUS AS MUCH AS HE DID YOU?”

              “No!” I forced my eyes to meet his, “I just…. I didn’t know what to do okay? I thought that this was the best way to handle things because I know you guys didn’t have the best relationship with your father before everything went to shit. I just wanted to try and make it a little less painless…Guess I really fucked that up. Shit. Dammit. I’m so sorry. I should’ve done something else. I’m sorry.”

              “IT’S ALRIGHT.” Papyrus rested his back against my shoulder. The weight of his ‘casual body’ was more cumbersome than his other ones, but in that moment, the heaviness made me want to cry in relief, “JUST PLEASE DON’T LIE TO ME AGAIN.”

              “I didn’t like it.” I added quietly, “I hated every minute of it.”

              “WAS THAT WHY YOU WEREN’T SLEEPING WELL? GUILT?”

              “And nerves.”

              “HMM….THE GREAT PAPYRUS WILL FORGIVE YOU AND THE KING FOR YOUR BLUNDERS….YOU HAD GOOD INTENTIONS.” Papyrus’s voice went very quiet, “HE’S BACK AFTER ALL OF THESE YEARS…”

              “How are you holding up in that regard?” I asked. The bitties began to climb back on top of us.

              “CONFUSED.” Papyrus nuzzled Snooze close to his cheek out of habit than an actual desire to do so.

              “I’m sorry man.” Harley patted Papyrus’s exposed spine.

              “oLiViA…yOu ShOuLd TeLl Us AbOuT tHiNgS lIkE tHiS.” Willoughby scolded me, “yOu AlSo ShOuLdN’t HaVe SnApPeD aT yOuR sIsTeR lIkE tHaT.”

              “SHE WAS JUST WORRIED ABOUT MY BROTHER.” Papyrus added to Willoughby’s argument, “I’M GLAD THAT MY BROTHER HAS SOMEONE LIKE THAT TO LEAN ON.”

              “I know.” It hurt like hell to know that I had crossed a line with my sister, “I don’t know if she’ll ever forgive me for this…”

              “Mom.” Harley huffed, nudging my leg with his foot, “You just need to apologize, and she’ll more than likely let it go.”

              “I don’t know…” Sissy had let a lot of my former mistakes slide. She had a tendency to let me get away with small slights because I was her younger sister, so it was to be expected that I would occasionally get into an argument with her. I had just never let any of my insecurities out into the sunlight before- especially in front of her, “I did kind of just spit in her face for trying to help me.”

              “it sounded more like she was just yelling to be yelling.” Snooze had chosen to sit between us instead of on one of us.

              “That actually wasn’t her yelling. She was way past that point.” Her voice had taken on that low, threatening tone that usually meant she would do something calculated instead of drastic, “Ugh...”

              “LIVI.” That nickname had never warmed my heart so much before, “IET WILL CALM DOWN.”

              “Maybe…” I had seen the results of Sissy getting that mad before. She had disowned more than one friend or client with that voice, and I was lucky that I was just getting off with a “I won’t talk to you for a while” warning, “But my new family drama isn’t really important. Papyrus, do you want to take some time off to figure things out? I know this must suck royally for you.”

              “NO.” Papyrus shook his head.

              “Are you sure? You could go spend some time with Sans and try to decide on what you guys are going to do.” I turned and leaned against his back gently.

              “HE PROBABLY NEEDS SOME TIME ALONE HIMSELF ACTUALLY.” Papyrus rubbed Lace’s back. The young bitty had begun to show signs of distress as the trouble continue to wage on, so it was nice to see that he was being somewhat assured that everything would be alright, “WE COULD VISIT THEM NEXT SUNDAY.”

              “I uh…don’t know if me going would be a good idea…” I protested.

              “WE SHOULD GO TOGETHER.” Papyrus sounded firm.

              _I really can’t argue after the shit I just pulled._

              “Alright.” I said reluctantly.

              Papyrus, the bitties, and I spent the next forty minutes just trying to fill the silence with quiet conversation about mundane things. All of us were eager to pretend that the past few hours hadn’t happened.

              _I’ve royally fucked up._

              We all ended up talking until Papyrus, Lace, and Hiro ended up falling asleep. Time had passed in a slow, fatiguing crawl that left me feeling like shit, but I knew that Asgore would worry if I didn’t call him.

              “I’ll be right back okay?” I whispered to Harley. Willoughby and Snooze were watching over the sleeping forms in the bed, “I’m just going to call Asgore.”

              “Okay.” Harley nodded. He caught me by the hair, pulling my face down to press a lazy kiss to my cheek, “I love you Mom.”

              “Thank you sweetie.” A lance of guilt and remorse almost knocked me to my knees.

              The hallway had the same eerie silence that the rest of the apartment did. _I hope that this goes back to being the kind place it started off as._ Settling down with my back against the door to Papyrus’s room, I dialed Asgore’s number.

              “Hello?” Asgore sounded as tired as I was, “Olivia?”            

              “Hey.” I closed the door to Papyrus’s bedroom and sat down in front of it, using it as a place to rest my back, “I just finished talking with Papyrus. How’s Gaster?”

              “Not well. Alphys and Undyne- who was not happy she had been kept out of the loop- are here to help me look after him.” A loud thump followed what he said.

              “Asgore?”

              “Sorry, I just dropped something.” Asgore apologized, “How are you doing?”

              “…Papyrus forgave me for what happened, but he’s probably going to keep second guessing me for a while because I lied to him. I deserve it of course….Still sucks though. I also need to apologize to Sissy.” How in the world I was going to manage to actually _do_ that was beyond me. Sissy’s defining trait was her reactionary temper, but her temper tended to be unpredictable. Sometimes she’d calm down in ten minutes. Others, it would take ten weeks to ten months to ten _years_ , “We really messed up didn’t we?”

              “We did.” Asgore sighed, “I tried to contact your sister, but all of my calls were sent straight to voicemail. Undyne visited their house to check on them.”

              “And?”

              “They’re still a bit agitated about the whole thing. They’re holding it together for Greyson, but Undyne noted that both of them were off.” Asgore paused. _He’s not telling me something. Asgore. Please just tell me what it is._ Hesitantly, Asgore added, “There was a bloodied knife in the sink. Josephine claims she cut herself while helping Sunshine and Cyan cook.”

              “Did she hurt her hand?” I really, _really_ wanted that to be the answer.

              “Undyne said her hands were perfectly fine.”

              I slammed my fist into the floor beside me.

              “Olivia?” Asgore sounded ready to come back to my apartment, “What was that?”

              “I just punched the floor.” My hand ached, but I did feel a little less frustrated, “Thank you for telling me about this. Papyrus and I are planning to visit on Sunday.”

              “Will you be okay?”

              “Maybe? Papyrus will be with me.” I shrugged, “We just can’t catch a break can we huh?”

              “It seems not.” Asgore laughed bitterly, “Let’s hope that fate decides to cut us some slack. I don’t know how many more failures I can stomach.”

              “Asgore…” I had the urge to say it. It wasn’t like I had anything else to lose, “I know that things have kind of sucked lately, but I wanted you to know that I…” I choked, “…really care about you.”

              “The feeling is mutual.” The gentle, sweet way he said that left me feeling better than I had since the failed dinner.

              _I’m falling in love with you…_

_…but I’ve got more than a couple issues to sort out before I can confess properly._


	24. Out in the Open

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I own nothing. Full disclaimer/links can be found in Ch1

              Work had helped me keep my mind off of things. I really began to understand why Sissy became a workaholic. Of course, everyone at work noticed something was off with Papyrus and I. Some politely tried to figure things out like Damon and Irene, but most of them- Rosie and Vipiria came to mind the fastest- directly asked us what the hell was going on. Papyrus and I knew that we technically _could_ keep it from them. They worked for us after all…but….We told them what happened. Rosie smacked the back of my head ‘for being such a blonde’, and Damon scolded me for a good three hours while everyone else focused on making sure Papyrus was doing okay.

              “here’s the onion mama.” Hiro and Snooze gestured to the freshly diced vegetable.

              “Thank you sweethearts.” I was just glad that I hadn’t been messing up while on the job. Papyrus blundered once or twice after being lost in thought. No one got mad at him for it though, “Papyrus! It’s your lunch break.”

              “ALRIGHT LIVI.” Papyrus nodded, “ARE WILLOUGHBY AND LACE BACK IN MY OFFICE OR YOURS?”

              “Mine. Lace’s back has been hurting him more lately.” I reminded him, “Be gentle.”

              “I WILL.” Papyrus paused, “DON’T FORGET THAT WE’RE GOING TO VISIT MY BROTHER TOMORROW.”

              “How could I?” I chuckled despite feeling like I had barbed wire wrapping around my stomach. Sissy had been true to her word. Neither she nor Nadia had contacted me all since that failure of a reintroduction. Nadia more than likely decided to keep her nose out of it when Sissy- who had to have been incensed- called her. _Is she mad at me too though? Oh I hope not._

              Granny had been extremely kind about the whole thing. She had even stopped by Sissy’s house to talk to her about it, but Sans ended up booting her out after she pushed Sissy too far by trying get onto her for the radio silence. Her only comment on the whole fiasco was that Sans could be down right terrifying when he wanted to be.

              “Mom?” Harley tapped the back of my hand, “You’ll burn the soup.”

              “Oh shit.” I grumbled, “Sorry.”

              “Lost in thought?” Harley whispered, trying his best to not worry Hiro. The optimistic baby blue had run himself ragged in his attempts to bring joy back into our apartment. Any more negativity probably would’ve made him break down crying again.

              “Yeah. I’m nervous.” I admitted, “Sissy’s never really been…this mad at me.”

              “She’s probably calmed down by now.” I could hear the hesitance in his voice.

              “You’re not really good at the whole optimism thing are you?” I teased.

              “That kind of became Hiro’s job.” Harley shrugged.

              “hiro? who needs the help of the marvelous baby blue?!” Hiro hopped up and down to get my attention.

              “No one sweetie.” I giggled, “We were just talking about how sweet you are.”

              “aww…” He blushed.

              “loud fits him better.” Snooze yawned.

              “hey!” Hiro whined.

              “what?” Snooze shrugged.

              “mama!” Hiro pouted up at me.

              “Guys.” Harley tapped both of them on the head, “Calm down some. We’ve still got to work!”

              “Harley’s right babies.” As unprofessional as it was, the normal banter between the two made me more than a little happy, “You guys are adorable, but can we leave the bickering at home?”

              The two reluctantly dropped the issue and went to go help  Con with some desserts.

              “I think it’s cute.” Rosie protested, nudging me with her hip, “They’re like two little puppies fighting over the same toy.”

              “Don’t encourage them.” I chuckled, “They’ll think it’s a way to get rewarded.”

              “They already do.” Rosie cut her eyes to where Con was slipping the two some bites of chocolate.

              “Jeez.” I still smiled though.

              “Chef.” Damon lightly kicked the back of my calf with one foot to get my attention, “How do you think tomorrow is going to go?”

              “Um…I have no idea.” I answered him honestly.

              “Well, no matter what happens, we’ve got your back.” Damon smiled at me, “Papyrus’s too.”

              “Thanks Damon.” _I’m really blessed to have them with me- really, **really** blessed._

              Some part of me was tempted to ask if my coworkers would come with me, but that was beyond irrational and stupid- even though they’d probably do it. I needed to sit down and have this conversation with Sissy on my own, one on one.

              That knowledge didn’t stop me from practically vibrating in fear while Papyrus had to all but drag me to Sissy’s house. The bitties tried their best to cheer me up and keep me happy on the way there. I felt terrible about making them worry.

              “Don’t worry guys.” I smiled at them all, nuzzling the top of Willoughby’s head, “I’m fine.”

              “LIVI.” Papyrus frowned down at me.

              “I am! Just nervous.” I stuck my tongue out at him, “Don’t worry.”

              “what the hell are you doing here?” Raze’s voice startled me. The puffed up edgy looked ready to rip my leg off and use it as a chew toy, and the only thing keeping him from snapping was his family out in the front yard with him.

              “WE CAME TO VISIT IET AND SANS.” Papyrus answered.

              “i’m not talkin’ ta ya pap.” Raze’s deep red eyes sparked with anger, “i’m talking ta that one. do you got any idea what ya’ve done?”

              “Raze.” Sunshine rested a calming hand on his mate’s upper arm, “The doctor said it was the anti-depressants that made it worse.”

              “and i still say that’s bullshit. we all know what really fuckin’ happened.” Raze growled.

              “Daddy?” Tinsel looked between his parents, me, and his parents again, thoroughly confused and more than a little anxious, “Are you mad about Mr. Gaster too?”

              “no. that’s the big guy’s problem.” Raze scoffed, “i’m furious because this little-“

              “enough man.” Blake appeared behind Raze and swatted him with his skateboard. Blake shot me a dirty look, but he did gesture to the door, “ari said you can come in. she wants to talk to you. pap, sans is in marcy’s room helping the little guy toddle around. it’s really cute.”

              “OH REALLY?” Papyrus perked up immediately.

              “yeah.” Blake grinned, “oh willoughby, lace, cyan burned you guys a cd with some of those songs you really liked. then waltzer burned some audio books onto one too. they sound pretty good! hiro, snuggle wanted to speak with you and harley about something too.” Blake paused and then added, “snooze! can’t believe i almost forgot to tell you this! jeez, atlantic wanted to talk to you about that blanket you brought the last time you visited.”

              I noticed what he was doing immediately

              “Is Sissy in her office?” I questioned, following him inside. Blake nodded. Cyan and Waltzer came and greeted Willoughby and Lace immediately. Snuggle waved Hiro and Harley over. Flowey shot me a look that I couldn’t quite read, but I would swear until the day I died that there was a brief flicker of pity in his beady, black eyes, “Alright, film Greyson for me would you Papyrus?”

              “OF COURSE MY BESTEST FRIEND!” Papyrus nodded.

              “hey pap.” Sans walked into the room. He looked like shit- thinner face, dark rings around his eyes, and faded pupils. The older skeleton still had the sly, familiar grin that I used to find welcoming. The slightly sinister glint in his eyes told me that he wasn’t happy with me, but I had the distinct feeling it wasn’t over Gaster, “olivia. newmore’s upstairs with idjit and december.”

              “Blake told me.” I forced myself to smile. A chill went up my spine as I realized I would have to pass the angry skeleton to go visit my sister. Still, I needed to do this. I gave my bitties sweet kisses and pinched Papyrus’s cheek before steeling myself and walking past Sans to go visit Sissy.

              “y o u  w o n ‘ t  h a v e  a  g o o d  t i m e  i f  y o u  s e t  h e r  o f f  a g a i n.” He warned me in a low voice before tickling Greyson playfully, “we’ve gotta look after mo don’t we buddy? she gives us her momivation after all.”

              “WHAT?” Papyrus raised a brow.

              “nothing bro.” Sans shrugged, “grey’s decided to call newmore ‘mo’ instead of the normal ‘mama’.”

              “That’s better than the “moomoo” it started off as.” Cyan snickered.

              The heartwarming banter did nothing to move the bowling ball of ice and fear in my stomach. It took all I had to not run up the stairs. _At least I know that Sans will protect Sissy no matter what._

              Sissy was quietly talking with Idjit and December as I walked up the stairs to her attic office. The condo she and Sans lived in at the time definitely wasn’t as grand as the apartment she used to live in, but it didn’t feel as sterile or fake either. The humble abode made her happy. It was also practically a castle compared to the dingy apartment she lived in before she got run off the road last year.

              “I’m fine guys.” Sissy sounded tired, “I’m fine. We figured it out before it got too bad, and I’m not on that medication anymore.”

              “b-but j-jo-o-jo…” Idjit sniffled.

              “Iddy.” Sissy sighed.      

              I came to the top of the steps and wanted to run back down when I saw what I did.

              Sissy had a tendency to sleep in her office, so she kept a lot of clothing upstairs. She was just changing from a short-sleeved t-shirt into a hoodie…..

              There were a couple of scabbed over lacerations on her arms.

              _A blood knife in the sink._

              “Oh hey.” Sissy tugged the hoodie on quickly, making the marking disappear like magic, “Didn’t I raise you to knock?”

              “Sissy…” I stepped forward. Sissy didn’t move and inch until I reached out for her arm, “Did I cause that?”

              “No. No.” Sissy shook her head, “You were the straw that broke the camel’s back, but the anti-depressants I were on set me up for that particular meltdown. It’s just a few cuts. All the bitties already reamed me for it.” Sissy pointed to Idjit and December, “I haven’t been left alone since. I can’t even take a piss with one of these guys sitting in the tub waiting on me.”

              “we’re worried about you.” December threw a pen at her. Sissy caught it with an expert hand.

              “I know. It’s why I let you guys get away with it.” Sissy snorted.

              “jojo.” Idjit frowned through his tears, “q-q-qu-u-ui-it h-hidi-i-ing i-it!”

              “Sorry buddy. Shhh….” Sissy picked Idjit up and let him rest against her chest. She rubbed his back soothingly, “It’s okay. Shh…One second.” She told me, nodding to a bean bag chair that had an indention shaped a lot like Sans. She noticed how hesitant I was to sit in it, “Sans is just mad about the you knows. He blames himself because I did it while he was showering, so he’s upset that he didn’t stop it you know.”       

              “Were you trying to…?”

              “No. I was a bit out of it because I had taken something to help me sleep, and then I dozed and had a night terror, and yeah.” Sissy shrugged like it was no big deal, “Reminded me a lot of my high school years without the booze. I’ll be fine now that I’m just doing the therapy again.”

              “Why did you start taking the medication?” I finally sat down. Sissy sat down in her office, rolling chair.

              “I couldn’t make the visits because of Grey.” Sissy sat down a mostly calmed Idjit on her lap, “So we thought it would be safer if I took some medication to keep everything from building up. Unlike Nadia’s, mine didn’t do jack diddly shit- just made it worse. I will be honest though.” Sissy leaned back in her chair, “It sucks having your little sister act like all you want to do is look good instead of protecting someone you love. So tell me Olivia, how do you really feel? Don’t lie to me to make me feel better either.”

              _Her bluntness really sucks sometimes._  

              “I….” Had no idea where to begin, “It just sucks being your little sister sometimes- _not_ for what you’re thinking!” I said, noticing that a pair of scissors on her desk had begun to twitch, “You and Nadia are both just…just….ugh. You two are some of the most powerful and talented people in Grayridge! You inspire fear and respect by just walking down the street. My entire life, I _always_ heard “Oh well Nadia could do this” and “Josephine can that” whenever I wanted to do something. Everyone held me up to you two and compared us.

              I get it. That’s what people do with siblings, but you and Nadia aren’t just Average Janes. You two are like goliaths, _titans_! Your both talented, skilled, smart, clever. I can’t compare. Everyone just looks at me like I should be the best of both worlds- the best jack of all trades. Instead, they find someone who’s running a restaurant while her sisters are running a multi-million dollar business and a respected web and graphic design business respectively. It drives me crazy knowing that no matter what I do, I will _never_ be able to step out of the shadow you guys cast on me. I won’t be able to just be Olivia. I’m _stuck_ being “Nadia and Josephine Newmore’s younger sister”. Fucking hell.” I slumped back in the bean bag chair.

              “Well….” Sissy picked up the scissors before Idjit could get any ideas, “Do you feel any better after spilling all of that?”

              “Um…a little.” I admitted.

              “Livvy.” Sissy stood up and sat Idjit back down on the desk next to December. She then promptly buried the scissors into the desk deep enough to keep Idjit from being able to move them. Then she walked over and crouched in front of me, “This isn’t the kind of thing you just sit on. It bad to live with a chip on your shoulder- especially when that chip is ridiculous.”

              “Are you saying my feelings are ridiculous?” I snapped, getting in her face.

              “Yes, but I can understand that you can’t help what _you_ feel.” Sissy pinched my nose, making me choke, “It’s nice to see your nose still flares up like crazy whenever you’re angry.”

              “Sissy.” I squawked.

              “You don’t need to compare yourself to Nadia and I.” Sissy let my nose go to ruffle my hair, “Because you _aren’t_ Nadia or I. You’re Olivia Penelope Newmore- a talented chef and skilled business woman. Unless you’ve forgotten, you’re the only one of us to start up a successful restaurant, and you’re the one spearheading more than a dozen charities for bitties. You are just a successful as Nadia and I. Hell, you’re even better at it because- like you said- people are scared of Nadia and I. We can’t just relax around the people we work with. You can.” Sissy smiled at me, “I’ve seen you working. You look so happy, and your staff absolutely adores you. Besides, even if you were just some homeless bum, you’d still be special. You’re my precious little sister after all.”

              “Even when I snap at you?” I felt my guilt come back.

              “Even then.” Sissy tapped my nose.

              “Sissy!” I threw my arms around her and pulled her into a hug that made us stumble to the side and land on the floor, “I’m sorry! I shouldn’t have said it like that. I was just so upset about how badly the night had gone because it meant so much to Asgore and I, and-“

              “Shhh…” Sissy rubbed soothing circles into my back, “I get it. I get it. Things not going according to plan sucks. It’s okay to be angry that it didn’t work out. I wasn’t exactly in the best of moods either. I mean…Sans teleported all the way to Oliverdale looking like shit. I wanted to punch someone.”

              “I was surprised you didn’t.” I laughed.

              “I almost did, but I promised myself I’d never raise my hand against family.” Sissy patted my back.

              “Me?”

              “No, you’re goat boyfriend.” Sissy rolled her eyes.

              “Sissy.” I poked her side with one of my fingers. She didn’t flinch, but I felt the muscles she had been building up tighten under impact. _My strong sister…._ I buried my face into her neck, “I’m sorry.”

              “It’s fine.” Sissy used one arm to hoist us up. I ended up sitting on her lap while she fixed my hair, “I forgive you. I’m sorry I came looking for a fight to begin with. Forgive me?” Sissy raised my face up to meet my eyes.

              “Of course.” I was going to start crying again at this rate, “Of course!”

              “Are you two quite done?”

              I jumped out of my skin. Sissy rolled her eyes at Nadia. The oldest Newmore sister stood in the doorway with Cesar sitting on her crossed arms as always.

              “What the fuck are you doing here?” Sissy asked bluntly.

              “Wondering why the hell I have ten voicemails from various people talking about my sisters fighting.” Nadia took off the black pumps she wore and sat down on the floor beside us, “Olivia, if you’re not feeling well about things, you should talk to someone. Letting it simmer doesn’t help.”  
              “How much did you hear?” I blushed.

              “MOST OF IT.” Cesar eyed Idjit warily. The cherry looked tempted to try and dig the scissors out of the desk, “WE WAITED BECAUSE IT LOOKED LIKE YOU TWO NEEDED TO SORT THINGS OUT.”

              “Oh, so you weren’t going to help me with this?” Sissy scowled at her.

              “You had it under control.” Nadia shrugged, “There wasn’t much else I could really add anyways.”

              “Hmph.” Sissy picked up the bean bag chair and hit her with it. Sissy gave me a look while Nadia picked herself up from being knocked to the side a bit, “Should we fill in the blank spots for her?”

              “Y-Yeah.” I went to get off of Sissy’s lap, but Sissy just crossed legs Indian style and situated me to be in a more comfortable position. Nadia used the bean bag chair to rest against.

              “So?” Nadia cocked her head.

              “W-Well…Um.” I slowly began to tell Nadia what was going on.

              My mind went back to old memories again. One memory in particular came to mind.

              I was 14, crying over my latest ‘boyfriend’ breaking up with me. Sissy and Nadia refused to help me at the same time because of a recent, nearly violent argument. Thus, I simmered over my troubles alone.

              _I wish they would just sit down and talk to me together._ I had thought, begging whatever higher power would listen to me to help them get over their issues.

              “Olivia.” Nadia tugged on one of my toes, “What does Eric have anything to do with this conversation?”

              “Sorry!” I squeaked, realizing I must’ve mumbled about the memory.

              “Don’t pick on her Nadia.” Sissy growled.

              “She needs to focus.” Nadia clucked her tongue.

              _They’re here, sitting down with me, and talking to me together…._

              I cried again, grateful that something good was coming out of all of this pain.


	25. Planning for Christmas

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I own nothing (except for Tinsel, Lace, and Atlantic). Full disclaimer/links can be found in Ch1
> 
> Oh my gosh....I had a light bulb moment while planning the next chapter that led to : OMFGISHIPGRANNYANDGASTER XD

              The small little piece of paradise Asgore found on Lake Ebott had become a real sanctuary for the two of us. Even when the Mt. Ebott area became flooded with cold air, we continued to visit it whenever we could to just catch a break from it all.

              “I’m glad that you worked things out with your sisters.” Asgore’s warm body kept the chill from sinking in too deep, “If only Sans could be as patient with his father…”

              “Sissy’s not pressing the issue.” I admitted, snuggling closer to his warmth. The stars above us glittered through wispy gray clouds. I enjoyed just laying out on the soft throw I had brought with Asgore by my side. The near isolation actually made me feel safer. It was almost like all of the problems bubbling in Grayridge couldn’t touch us, “She wants him to do things at his pace.”

              Sissy had gotten more than a little frustrated with Asgore and Gaster when they kept trying to push the issue. Eventually, she just snapped at them that Sans would just hate Gaster more and more the harder they pressed the issue. That shut them both up real quick.

              “I feel bad for him.” Asgore sighed, “Papyrus and Gaster are starting to build a relationship back up, but he’s just so…”

              “Bitter.” That was the way Sissy described it to me. There was a lot of bad blood between the two that wouldn’t go away because of Gaster’s miraculous return, “He’s trying though.”

              “That’s all we can ask for I suppose.” Asgore’s thumb stroked back and forth across my lower back where his hand rested, “Thank you for letting Snooze and Willoughby spend time with Gaster. They really help him remember things.”

              “It’s no problem. They like helping him.” Pride filled my chest. My little guys were helping someone, “It’s good for them too.”

              “Hmm…” Asgore smiled.

              The two of us rested in serene, comfortable silence. One of the plus sides to our relationship was that neither of us felt the desire to fill any silence that fell over us. We weren’t desperately trying to keep the conversation going to keep things from becoming awkward, and that only made me fall harder. There was one thing we definitely need to discuss however.

              “I heard Toriel is moving to Harrisburg instead of Blackridge.” I commented, not looking up at him. Harrisburg was in the opposite direction of Blackridge and farther away from Grayridge than the other large city was.

              “I know. No one in Blackridge was willing to hire a monster as a teacher.” Asgore made an annoyed sound, “She tried her best to find a position, but every single school turned her down.”

              “That’s discrimination.” I growled, “She could take it to court.”

              “She could, but then she’d become the token monster member of the staff and have to deal with her coworkers constant harassment and hazing.”

              “You sound like you’ve heard a story like that.” I bit my lip and looked up at him. He was glaring at the stars.

              “I have. It’s happened on more than one occasion.” Asgore sighed, “A school in Harrisburg needs a new History teacher, and they’re willing to hire her.”

              “Well that’s good at least.” It still didn’t sit well with me about the way the schools were treating her. _I’ll be doing something about that._ I couldn’t do much, but I could alert some people higher up and at the very least tell them what was going on.

              “It is. She’s already spoken with some of the other teachers. From what Undyne has told me, they seem nice.” Asgore shrugged, “Toriel still refuses to speak to me however.”

              “I’m sorry.” I kissed his chin.

              “We haven’t spoken in years, but I wish that she would at least listen to my half of the story sometimes.” Asgore sighed.

              “She should.” I agreed. That small flicker of jealousy I felt towards Toriel blazed up, but I managed to strangle it down. I tugged myself on top of him and cradled his face with my hands, “You’re staying in Grayridge though…right?”

              “Yes.” Asgore nodded. His hands came to rest on my waist. His eyes searched mine for a little bit, and he ended up chuckling.

              “What?” I brushed my nose against his, “Whaaat?”

              “You’re still jealous after all of this time?” Asgore’s hands on my waist were the only thing keeping me from falling off of his chest in shock.

              “I-I… I’m….” I grumbled and went lax against his chest, resting my head under his chin, “Fine. I’m jealous. It’s hard not to be you know.” I tugged on some of his fur to express my displeasure at being outed.

              “Hmmm?” Asgore sounded too amused to my embarrassed ears.

              “Oh shut it.” I raised my head to glare at him, “We can’t all be the former wives of a handsome, polite king or have his kids.” I pouted, “Hmph.”

              “Olivia.” Asgore’s paw reached up and tangled in my hair.

              “What?” I sighed, finally meeting his gaze. The heat I saw there reminded me just how long my recent dry spell had last, “Oh…”

              And what happened next…

              Is absolutely no else’s business! What the hell do you think this is erotica? This dirty goatman fucker’s lips are sealed.

              I did have a limp at work the next day though, so a lot of people- Rosie was the first- put two and two together and gave me hell for it all day. Papyrus’s cheeks stayed deep orange the entire day too.

              “Really?” Harley asked me through laughter, “REALLY?”

              “Yes. Yes. Yes.” I poked the back of his head with one of my fingers, “Don’t tell Hiro. I don’t want to have to explain to him why all of you are acting like this.”

              “Ha. What are you talking about?” Harley pointed over to where Hiro sat staring at me with bright blue cheeks. Snooze just napped beside him like a little angel as though he didn’t just corrupt my little baby blue.

              “Dammit Snooze.” I groaned. My throat was still a bit sore too, so I ended up coughing. Rosie and Damon snickered a bit, “I swear to god I will start hitting you people with a mop!” I all but threw my hands up frustration.

              No one let it go for the rest of the day. I did end up smacking a couple of people with the mop as revenge. Someone- I’m guessing Rosie- texted Sissy to tell her all about it, so I ended up getting ribbed by both her _and_ Nadia over my lunch break in a three way phone call. _I hate them all so much sometimes._

              “LIVI.” Papyrus knocked on my door, “WE’RE MEETING UP WITH MY BROTHER AND IET TO TALK ABOUT CHRISTMAS?”

              “Yup.” I gently shook Lace awake. The young bitty bolted right up and looked around, reaching for Willoughby. He only calmed after his father’s hand gently patted his back, “Night terror buddy?” Lace nodded.

              “SoRrY bAbY.” Willoughby murmured, patting his son’s head.

              “should we start giving you the tea your daddy uses as well?” Hiro wondered. Lace shrugged weakly.

              “We’ll see okay?” I told him. Papyrus and I picked up the bitties and began to lock up. Hiro and Harley were on my shoulders, and Lace, Willoughby, and Snooze were perched on Papyrus, “Nadia should be there too, so we should hurry. She’s pretty prickly about people being on time.”

              “she can be pretty mean.” Hiro crossed his arm, “it is hard to believe that she is my Amazing Aunt’s twin sometimes…”

              “I know right? It’s like night and day.” I chuckled, “Kind of like Papyrus and Sans.”

              “WE DON’T FIGHT THAT OFTEN…DO WE?” Papyrus frowned.

              “I think removing the arguing is a given bud.” Harley let out a puff of smoke and smile at Papyrus, “She probably just means he difference in the way they do things  like how you throw your all into whatever you do up front while Sans adds his contribution quietly from the sidelines.”

              “OH! THAT MAKES SENSE.” Papyrus chuckled.

              “ssss…i-e-i..s-s-st-t-tee..rrrrss.zzz” Lace coughed out, wincing at how bad the simple word made his throat hurt. His face twisted in annoyance as he gritted out, “ddee…fir..far…faer-reeenn..na-nt.”

              “Well, guys and girls do have different ways of doing things.” _Though Sissy tends to act more like a guy when it comes to her problems. She either bottles them up or punches someone hard enough to knock out teeth._

              Sans had given me back my key- how he stole it from me in the first place was beyond me- after seeing Sissy, Nadia, and I walk downstairs talking like normal. He had still been more than a little angry with me about the whole thing, but he didn’t actively hold a grudge against me. Thus, Papyrus and I could still get into their condo despite the fact that Papyrus forgot his keys back in the apartment.

              Of course, we walked into a bitty argument.

              “i’m just saying that you should clean up your shit while you’re mooching here.” Waltzer stood face to face with the taller Cesar, not taking any of the boss’s shit, “it’s bad enough you guys just come crashing in here and say ‘we’re staying’. you should pull your weight around.”

              “I DIDN’T REALIZE YOU MADE GUESTS WORK IN THIS HOUSEHOLD.” Cesar responded dryly, crossing one of his legs which left him balancing on one leg. The black eye patch he wore over his injured eye made him look like someone in the mafia with his stark black suit and blood red tie, “HOW POLITE.”

              “are you seriously about to trying and rag on me about manners?” Waltzer’s eye flickered. Atlantic, who had been behind his father, peered around at the tall boss. The young hybrids eyes flared a deep, angry purple that made Cesar pause, “what? my kid scaring you?”

              “OF COURSE NOT.” Cesar snorted, “I’M JUST SURPRISED HE’S LIVED THIS LONG WITHOUT ONE OF YOU BUMBLING IDIOTS BLINDING HIM PERMENANTLY.”

              “i’m practically blind already jackass.” A couple of small, dogish shaped skulls appeared behind Atlantic, simmering with blue magic, “you don’t need to rub it in.”

              “I’M MERELY MAKING AN OBERSVATION.” Cesar fixed his tie without even paying the young bitty too much attention.

              “c-cesar.” Idjit peered out of Greyson’s bedroom. The boss tensed, “p-pull y-y-o-our w-we-eight…” There was a flash of silver and a sharp box cutter was slammed into the wall across from Greyson’s bedroom, joining a ton of knives, scissors, and other sharp objects.

              _Dear lord, how has no one been killed yet?_

              “Jeez guys.” Harley teleported onto the living room floor, “You really don’t know how to just chill out huh?”

              “hey harley.” Blake, who had been ignoring all of the drama going down on the living floor in favor of watching his brother and Flowey read, hopped down from the coffee table to initiate their ‘secret handshake’ that Harley really didn’t remember, “glad to see you again man.”

              “Olivia!” Tinsel tripped in his hurry to hug me and landed on my foot. He didn’t care and smiled up at me, couching through his excited greeting, “I’m so glad to see you again!”

              “I’m glad to see you too sweetie.” I gently rubbed the undamaged side of his head.

              “tinsel!” Hiro slid down my arm and wrapped the hybrid into a surprisingly gentle hug, “i’m so glad to see you! you’ve been doing well my young protégé!”

              “I have. Did you know the bitty techs learned how to make a ton of new braces for bitties like me?” Tinsel showed Hiro the new braces around his damaged leg and ribs, “It makes them hurt less!”

              “that’s good.” Snooze yawned and appeared behind the young bitty to pat his back, “lace actually got a new brace himself actually.”

              Lace looked down at the ground and just waited for Papyrus to gently sit him and his father on the ground. My hybrid let the excited Tinsel pulled him into a tight hug that left Atlantic simmering more than a little in jealousy.

              “How’s Ash doing?” Harley sat down on the ground.

              “well enough. ember’s a bit mad at me for introducing him to rock music though.” Blake laughed, “he says the little guy just blasts the stuff nonstop.”

              “Ember’s not a big rocker I take it?”

              “hel-“ Sunshine’s head appeared in the doorway from the kitchen, “-heck no. ember likes jazz mostly.” Blake timidly tried his best to hide behind Harley as Sunshine continued to glare him until the ray noticed Willoughby.

              “Willougbhy.” Sunshine happily hurried over and shook my poppy’s hand, “It’s good to see you again.”

              “hElLo SuNsHiNe.” Willoughby said fondly. Raze watched it all from the kitchen with a surprisingly neutral look on his face.

              “Olivia. Papyrus.” Nadia stood up from where she sat on the couch with her laptop, “Sans and Josephine are upstairs.”

              “Greyson?” I looked around curiously.

              “Idjit and December are watching him.” Nadia nodded to the hallway filled with sharp objects.

              _Well. He’s in good hands a least._

              “You’re late.” Nadia waved for Papyrus and I to follow her up to Sissy’s office.

              “WE ENDED UP HAVING TO LOCK UP BY OURSELVES.” Papyrus apologized, “SORRY.”

              “…It’s fine.” _Hell has officially frozen over. Nadia just forgave someone for being late!?_ “Sans and Josephine have been busy all day anyways.”

              “DID SOMETHING HAPPEN?” Papyrus asked, ducking under the low door frame and barely fitting himself in the tight space of the stairwell.

              “A tree branch damaged their roof.” Nadia explained. As we got closer to the top, we could hear the two of them speaking to one another.

              “I’m telling you that we should just redo the roof entirely Comic.” Sissy sighed, “There’s no point in just patching up one spot. It’s like fixing a hole in a dress ready to fall apart instead of just getting a new dress!”

              “i thought we were planning on getting a bigger place anyways.” Sans shrugged, “i don’t see the the point in fixing the hole thing if we can avoid it.”

              “We could resell this place for some cash though.” Sissy protested.

              “We actually need to discuss Chris-“ Nadia squeezed her arms around herself before darting between Papyrus and I, “-I left Cesar downstairs with those maniacs.”

              “My bitties aren’t crazy bitch!” Sissy yelled down after her. She grinned at Papyrus and I, “Hey kiddos. Here to talk Christmas?”

              “YES!” Papyrus nodded, “THE GREAT PAPYRUS HAS A FEW IDEAS ABOUT HOW WE SHOULD CELEBRATE!”

              “we can’t wait to hear them pap.” Sans plopped down into his bean bag chair. I noticed something was written on the back of his head, “hmm?” I pointed to the area it would be on my head and raised a brow, “your sister got jealous  while we were christmas shopping earlier and wrote ‘property of josephine ophelia arietta newmore. do not touch’ on the back of  head in sharpie to discourage would be flirts.”

              “It worked didn’t it?” Sissy sat down on top of him, and I noticed that she had something similar on her neck, only in a different color, “There are more skeleton fuckers in this city than I first thought there’d be.”

              “OH FOR THE LOVE OF.” Papyrus blushed, “PLEASE STOP.”

              “Though, if we want to talk about raunchy love affairs…” Sissy shot me a sly grin, “Is that rumor about foot size true or not sis?” She winked at me.

              I took off one of my sandals and threw it at her face. Sans, who was practically howling in laughter, caught it with his magic before it could hit its mark. Papyrus sank to the ground, hiding his face behind his knees.

              “You guys…” I groaned.

              “Discussing Olivia’s new found sex life?” Nadia asked. Cesar was tucked safely in her arms again.

              “I’ve been having sex since I was-“ _Not finishing that because Sissy would kill me if she found out_. “-….I’ve had sex before this.”

              “PLEASE DON’T YELL THINGS LIKE THAT.” Papyrus looked like an orange, “IT’S TOO EMBARASSING FOR THE GREAT PAPYRUS!”

              “Oh, sorry.” I rubbed the back of my neck guiltily.

              “You didn’t answer me though.” Sissy pouted.

              “The foot thing?” Nadia sat down between two of us, and I flopped to the ground, wincing a little bit.

              “Yup.” Sissy wriggled her eyebrows.

              “More than.” I said simply. I tried my best to ignore the blush on my face and change the subject, “CHRISTMAS! What are we doing!?”

              “Granny said we could come over to her house if we wanted to.” Sissy let me change the subject with a smug smirk on her face, “Tyrone and Leo won’t be coming by this year though. Leo’s going to Japan early with his new girlfriend, and Tyrone’s got some family business to attend to.”

              “WOULD SHE MIND MY FATHER COMING?” Papyrus shot a cautious glance at Sans. The shorter skeleton’s face flickered with hatred briefly before settling on mild distaste, “SANS…”

              “if you want him to come pap fine.” Sans shrugged, “i won’t let it bug me.”

              “You certain about that bone baby?” Sissy rested her forehead against Sans’s.

              “mmm…” Sans said noncommittally.

              “Will you be bringing Asgore?” Nadia looked at me and cocked a brow.

              “Yes.” I had already asked him to come with me wherever I went. Quite frankly, I think he was just glad he had somewhere to be.

              “Try to not be too loud then.”

              I threw my other shoe. Cesar’s bones pinned it to the ground before it could ever touch her.

              “Why are both of you so…uggghhh..” I blushed.

              “Because it bothers you.” Sissy said simply, stretching out across Sans’s lap, “You’re adorable when you get all red faced and huffy.”

              “I’m a sadist.” Nadia shrugged.

              _I hate you both so much…._

_…no…._

_That’s a lie. I love you both more than anything else in the entire world._


	26. Christmas Eve

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I own nothing. Full disclaimer/links can be found in Ch1
> 
> and Christmas Eve in their world rolls around *after* Christmas IRL does. xP

              Christmas was the one thing that my parents hadn’t been able to taint. True, they mostly favored Nadia with their gifts when we were younger because she was their heir, but they paid me some attention as well. Sissy, who was typically forgotten by everyone except for Granny, Leo, and I, made up for their lackluster care with a big smile on her face. As time went on and I grew older, the holiday became a way for me to try and pay her back in some small way.

              “Hmmm…” I glared at the neatly wrapped present. _Is this good enough? Ugh. Sissy is so hard to buy for!_ Even Sans had issues trying to figure out what to get her because she rarely asked for anything.

              “she’ll like it.” Snooze patted my cheek.

              “Are we sure about that?” I bit my thumb.

              “Yes.” Harley’s magic tugged my thumb out of my mouth before I could draw blood, “You could give her a box of tissues and she’d be grateful.”

              “I know.” I whined, “It’s just…she gets me a really nice gift each year, so I want to make sure that whatever I give her is…well… _good._ ”

              “ShE’s BoUnD tO lIkE iT. sUnShInE sAiD sO- rEmEmBeR?” Willoughby was carefully wrapping a gift he had picked out for Sunshine and Raze for all of their help with his recovery. I was just glad that we managed to find a proper therapist for the little guy before Toriel had to leave.

              “our Amazing Aunt will be overjoyed!” Hiro insisted, throwing his arms around my wrist in a tight hug and kissing my arm, “how could she not enjoy our brilliant gift? we put a lot of effort into it!”

              “We’ll see I guess…” I sighed.

              Sissy had a tendency to have things handmade for the people she cared about. Even if she wasn’t the one who made the object, one of her talented friends in the states or Europe did. I wanted to return the favor that year and try to create something for her. Wanting the gift to last longer than a couple of days, any and all food based ideas were thrown into the trash. I also didn’t want it to be some random, cliché thing like a handmade mug. The gift needed to be special to her, and it needed to be something she’d use.

              “LIVI?” Papyrus peeked into my bedroom, “DO YOU HAVE ALL OF YOUR THINGS PACKED? ASGORE’S HERE WITH PAPA.”

              “I do.” Two suitcases- one for me, a smaller one for the bitties- sat side by side on the floor, “Willoughby? Did you get your present for Sunshine and Raze done?”

              “mHmM.” Willoughby held up the box, “It NeEdS a BoW tHoUgH.”

              “here!” Hiro placed one on top of the package, “done!”

              “tHaNk YoU.” Willoughby tucked the present under arm, “lAcE?”

              Lace tapped his father’s back to let him know he was there.

              “Let’s go.” I smiled at them, “To Granny’s house!” I paused, “Is your dad in the front passenger seat?”

              “NO?” Papyrus picked up my suitcases before I could say anything.

              “I call shotgun!” I scooped all of my bitties up and darted past the stunned skeleton brother, “I’m sitting next to my boyfriend dammit!”

              “mama!” Hiro laughed from where he was latched onto my purse strap. Harley sighed and clung onto my hair with one arm wrapped around Willoughby’s waist. Lace and Snooze, blank faced without a care in the world, bounced up and down in my arms.

              Asgore’s familiar truck waited outside in the parking lot. The king himself was leaned against it, driver’s door open, talking with Gaster, who was leaning in between the front seats.

              “Asgo!” I switched Lace and Snooze to sit on one arm, so I could jump up and squeeze Asgore in a one armed hug. We’d both been super busy with work and planning for the holidays. _I’m so glad I get to see him again….Jesus FUCKING Christ, I sound like one of those myspace emo 13 year olds who hasn’t seen her boyfriend in five hours._

              “Olivia.” Asgore laughed, catching me before I slid down his front and squished my bitties. Despite looking like a teddy bear- er…goat, my King of the Underground definitely hadn’t let up his training schedule any. _I never realized how much of a turn on it is for me to be dating a guy who can hold me up with one arm. Damn, Asgore, you’re raising my standards too high for any human men to compete against!_ I kissed his cheek, “Harley, Hiro, Snooze, Willoughby, and Lace as well.” Asgore nodded to my bitties, smiling at them.

              “asgo.” Snooze tapped at Asgore’s chest, his mouth opening an insane amount to just let out one of the tiniest yawns he’s ever produced, “up.”

              “Alright.” Asgore used his free hand to pick the sleepy up. Snooze began to doze off the instant he was placed on Asgore’s shoulder. Gingerly sitting me back down on the ground, Asgore asked, “Where’s Papyrus?”

              “RIGHT HERE YOUR MAJESTY!” Papyrus walked out of the apartment with his suitcase, my suitcase, the bitty suitcases, and all of the presents we had to bring balanced and/or cradled precariously on one arm.

              “Sorry Papyrus.” I blushed, wriggling my way down to help Papyrus get things in the back of Asgore’s truck. After we got everything loaded up, Asgore and Papyrus tied a tarp over the back of the truck to make sure that nothing would fly out while we were driving, “All set?” I asked.

              “YES!” Papyrus nodded.

              Asgore opened my door for me before returning to the driver’s seat.

              “HELLO!” Papyrus beamed at his dad as he entered the truck. The sickly doctor, who had to take medication for a couple of magic channeling problems, looked up from where he was quietly murmuring to Willoughby. Gaster responded to his son in case, which made Papyrus remind him, “SPEAK IN TONGUE PAPA. THE HUMANS WON’T BE ABLE TO UNDERSTAND YOU OTHERWISE!”

              “My apologizes.” Gaster didn’t sound too sorry to be honest.

              “Is everyone set?” Asgore moved Snooze to rest on top of his head, where his crown would be if he were wearing it, before buckling his seat belt. We all made some noise of confirmation, so he began to back out of the parking space, “I don’t know where your Granny lives, and I um…”

              “He lost the directions on the way here.” Gaster finished for him. The hairs on the back of my neck still raised at the distorted, jagged quality to his voice, but I could understand him at least.

              “I can guide you.” I patted Asgore’s arm, “Don’t worry.”

              “Thank goodness.” Asgore sighed in relief.

              “LIVI?” Papyrus leaned forward, catching an excited Hiro who almost tumbled off of my shoulder, “ARE WE GOING TO END UP BEING LATE?”

              “A little bit.” I nudged Papyrus’s head back when I spotted a police cruiser, “Seatbelt Pap. _Seatbelt._ ” Thankfully, the cruiser’s attention was focused on a car that sped right past ours, illegally going into the left hand lane to get past us and throwing a beer can at the truck, “Fucking assholes.” I grumbled, fist pumping in glee when the police gave chase, “Nadia is already there apparently. Undyne and Dr. Alphys left a good 20 minutes before us. Sans and Sissy _were_ there, but they forgot something, so they had to run back to their house.”

              “They’ll be teleporting though.” Asgore subtly slid his hand into mine. Leaning against his arm, I buried the happy grin in his fur, “Will your grandmother be upset?”

              “Nah.” Harley, who had opted to stay sitting on my lap with Lace, snorted at the idea, “She’s probably just going to keep cooking more food for us all to eat.”

              “Very true.” I agreed, “Granny’s always wanted to be able to have a nice, _large_ , friendly dinner. The more the merrier.”

              “You won’t have more of your family come by?” Gaster questioned.

              “Aunt Catherine and her sons are dealing with a couple of false rape allegations right now actually.” My cousin Thomas was a royal womanizing jackass, but the allegations were bullshit because he was on a different continent when the whole incident allegedly occurred. For some reason, people wanted to ignore _facts_ backed by receipts, phone bills, and security camera footage that shows him cheating on his wife with a willing partner in Spain in favor of blindly believing some random bitch who had to flee Oliverdale after trying to burn a guy’s house down, “Needless to say, they’re a bit busy, but it’s not like the dining room is going to be empty. Seven monsters, four humans, a baby, and sixteen bitties kind of screams ‘overcrowded’ if anything.”

              “I THOUGHT THAT BLAKE WAS KEEPING ASH FOR CHRISTMAS SINCE THE LITTLE GUY IS AFRAID OF FLYING?” Papyrus questioned.

              “Oh right! Seventeen bitties then.” I had almost forgotten Blake’s son. The little hybrid was usually with his carrier parent instead of his donor parent, so our interactions had been more than a little limited, “I heard he’s really cute.”

              “He is.” Harley sighed affectionately, “Sweet kid too. He’s got his head on straight, and he doesn’t snap at people for no reason- can be a little uptight at times though. I blame Ember for that one.”

              “iT’s NoT bAd To HaVe MaNnErS.” Willoughby pointed out.

              “It’s not.” Harley agreed, “He’s just such a tight ass about some things, and it drives Blake more than a little crazy since he just wants the kid to relax and br- Lace?” Harley looked at the young bitty sitting across from him, “You okay?” Lace quickly signed something to him, “Oh, you’re still sleepy. C’mere.” Harley reached over and tugged the taller bitty over to sit beside him, “Take a nap kiddo.” He ran a soothing hand up and down Lace’s skull until the little bitty began to sag against him. He returned his attention to the conversation he’d been having with Willoughby, “Blake really just wants the kid to just chill sometimes and not stress over some really stupid things.”

              “well, at least he shall become an splendid gentleman!” Hiro had decided to use Papyrus’s scarf as a seat of sorts.

              “….” Gaster silently listened as the bitties continued to talk about what was going on in their inner circles, “It’s like they have their own extended family.”

              “Eh,” I shrugged, “Granny’s started to call them her great-grandbitties, so in a way, they’re  cousins.”

              Thinking about my family in that sense made me realize just how large our family had grown in such a short amount of time. Granny went from only having my sisters and I to having a great-grandson and a variety of great-grandbitties like Harley, Waltzer, and Cesar and great-great-grandbitties like Lace, Tinsel, and Atlantic. _Hoooolly shit._ I also realized that- when it came down to it- I saw the bitties as my actual relatives instead of pets or something equivalent to that.

              “Huh…” I murmured as Papyrus and Gaster began a rather stilted conversation about the holiday. Neither of them were hostile to each other, but the past still weighed heavily on their interactions.

              “Olivia?” Asgore whispered under his breath. The conversation going on the back seat definitely needed to happen, so we tried our best to be quiet and not draw their attention.

              “I just realized how much my family has grown.” I responded back when Papyrus launched into a very long monologue about how happy he was to be celebrating this with his father despite everything that had happened before, “It’s a happy thought.”

              “Ah…”

              The light we were approaching turned red, and while we waited for it change, Asgore tilted my head up to give me a quick kiss. Gaster and Papyrus both made shocked choking noises at the sudden PDA. I was too busy floating on cloud nine to really give a damn.

              The car ride to Granny’s gave me a bit of déjà vu. It was also a large journey with Gaster in the backseat. Only this time around, Asgore and I weren’t bubbling with anxiety and fear about how in the hell we were going to explain things to anyone, and Papyrus was in the back seat trying his best to reconnect with his father with their rather awkward conversations.

              “I know little about human customs.” Gaster’s eyes narrowed as we pulled up to Granny’s house. Nadia’s expensive car was parked in front right next to Granny’s row of motorcycles that almost killed the ‘sweet Granny’s house’ vibe the place gave off, “What am I supposed to do in this situation?”

              “When we walk in, just wait for us to introduce you to her and say some kind of thank-you to her.” I explained, “She won’t care if you’re informal or anything, but at least try to smile okay?”

              Gaster frowned at me.

              “PAPA THAT IS THE OPPOSITE OF WHAT LIVI ASKED YOU TO DO.” Papyrus sighed, “JUST WATCH ME OKAY?”

              “Very well.” Gaster nodded. We parked soon after that. Granny must’ve heard the truck coming up her drive because she was waiting for us on the porch, “That is her?”

              “Yup.” I grinned, opening my door and picking up Harley and Lace, “Granny!” I beamed at her.

              “Hello Olivia!” Granny waved at me as she approached us, “I’m glad you made it darling.”

              “GRANNY!” Papyrus, who must’ve taken Willoughby from Gaster, stepped out of the truck and helped me get down.

              “Papyrus.” Granny tugged the two of us into a squeezing hug, “It’s so good to see my little babies!” Granny didn’t pull back as she asked, “So the other two must be Gaster and Asgore?”

              “Yes.” My cheeks were already red. _What are you planning old woman?_ Granny released the two of us and walked over to where Gaster and Asgore had begun to untie the back of the truck.

              “Hello there you two.” Granny beamed at them. She took one look at Gaster and guess, “You must be Sans and Papyrus’s father yes? Dr. Gaster?” Granny stretched out a polite hand, “I’m Persephone Arietta. It’s a pleasure to meet you!”

              Gaster blinked at her hand a couple of times before reluctantly shaking it.

              “The pleasure is mine.” The slightly louder distortion effect in his voice said otherwise. Granny picked up on how hostile it sounded with a simple tilt of the head, but she just patted the back of his hand before moving on to Asgore.

              “So.” Granny, who was 6’0 tall, looked up at my giant goatman boyfriend, “You must be the boyfriend?”

              “I am.” Asgore almost  got popped in the face by rope in his shock. He cleared his throat and offered a hand out for her to shake, “I’m Asgore Dreemurr. I apologize for my companion’s attitude. He’s still adjusting to life on the surface.”

              “It’s fine. A lot of people find me intimidating, so I’m used to such treatment.” Granny shrugged and didn’t even flinch at Gaster’s soft hiss at her insinuation. Granny looked at the lot of us with her fists on her hips, “Hmmm….I think I might have to take Joey up on that offer of hers to sleep in the living room.”

              “We’re out of guest bedrooms?”  I cocked my head. That should’ve been impossible. There were six guest bedrooms _and_ her own bedroom.

              “Well, you and Asgore will take up one. Dr. Gaster, Dr. Alphys, and Undyne will each take up one room a piece. I converted one of the rooms into an at home gym, and the other has been turned into a little nursery for Greyson.” Granny sighed, “Well, Joey won’t mind. She and Sans can sleep just about anywhere comfortably.”

              “You converted one of the guest bedrooms?” My brows furrowed, “Are you staying at home?”

              “Did I forget to tell you?” Granny said. We managed to untie the rope from around the truck bed and began to unload suitcases and presents, “I’m retiring.”

              “No way.” My jaw dropped, “ _You_ are retiring?”

              “I’m not as young as I used to be sweetie.” Granny laughed, “Besides, I like being closer to you girls.”

              “You’re retiring…” I repeated. Granny had always been a bit of a workaholic, so to know that she was giving up her company meant a lot, “Is Caspian taking over?”

              “Reluctantly.” Granny nodded, “But he’ll do great.”

              “Grandmoth- Olivia.” Nadia had spotted me in one of the hallways. Cesar- who might as well have been named Teddy- was tucked safely in her arms as always.

              “Hey Nadia.” I smiled over the stack of presents in my arms.

              “Do you guys need help?” Nadia asked.

              “Obviously.” Granny rolled her eyes, “Dr. Gaster may have three  pairs of hands, but there are dozens of things to get out.”

              “YOU DON’T NEED TO BE SO RUDE YOU OLD BAG.” Cesar snapped.

              “Hush Cesar.” Nadia said sharply, “We’ll help.”

              Dr. Alphys and Undyne also came out and helped us get things done at a quicker speed. Sissy, Sans, and their little family still hadn’t arrived yet. After everything had been placed ‘under’- more like squished around- the almost completely covered bottom part of the tree, everyone broke off into groups to discuss things privately. I was watching Harley guide Willoughby and Lace around the Christmas tree, telling them all about the presents when Undyne plopped down on the couch beside me.

              “Hey kid!” Undyne ruffled my hair. When Asgore wasn’t looking, she shot me a sly wink, “Squish filled me in, so, you’ve got royal conquest on your agenda eh?”

              “Undyne.” I swatted her stomach and immediately regretted. The hard muscles underneath her scales left my hand throbbing, “Why are you guys all just total pervs.”

              “I’m only interested because I think it’s a good thing.” Undyne tossed and arm around my shoulder, “Thanks kid. The king could really use some loving every now and then after all the shit he’s been through.”

              “I know.” I nodded.

              “So if you break his heart, I’m snapping your femurs in half.” I blanched at the whispered threat, “Sorry, I love your sister, but someone has got to look out for him.”

              “I’ll take good care of him.” I promised her, “You can count on that.”

              “Good.” Undyne smacked my back roughly, “You Newmore sisters are good people.”

              “Thanks.” I rubbed my back.

              A distortion appeared in the living room. Sissy and Sans, covered in bitties, stepped out trying to comfort a squalling Greyson.

              “Shh….” Sissy rocked him back and forth, “I’m so sorry your nap got interrupted by that rude man, but Daddy already threw him into the river. There’s not much else we can do boo boo…Shhhhhhhh.”

              “Troubles?” Granny asked Sans, taking some of the bitties off of him.

              “a couple.” Sans shrugged, catching Idjit with his magic when the small, sleepy cherry slid off of his head, “dealt with them as they came though.”

              “he _threw_ them into the river…” A stunned orange sans-type, grillby-type bitty kept muttering to himself over and over, “he _actually threw them into a **river.**_ ”

              “Yes Ash.” Blake patted his stunned son on the back while Sunshine used one of his sleeves to clean the little guy’s glasses, “He did.”

              “Do we want to know?” Nadia raised a brow.

              “Nah. Not important.” Sissy shook her head, “Just my magnetic unluck drawing some jackasses too close for comfort.”

              _Oh jeez._

              “Well at least the real celebration can begi-“

              I then noticed the two _definitely_ new bitties on Sissy’s shoulders.

              “Huh?” I blinked at them.

              “Oh.” Sissy grinned, “Undyne, Alphys, come say hello to your new friends!”


	27. Christmas Day

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I own nothing. Full disclaimer/links can be found in Ch1
> 
> Just to put this here as well: The Undyne and Alphys bitties that appear in this chapter (albeit briefly) were created by SeptraGirl on deviant art (Rajani_the_Freak here on AO3). You can find them on her deviant art at http://septragirl.deviantart.com/
> 
> 3 more chapters to go!

              “OhmygodyougotusbittiesforChristmas….” Alphys stared at the small bitty in her hands. The undyne-type, an asagi, looked up at her anxiously.

              “Yup. I was just going to get you a dynie, but…uh…I had the feeling you might kill me if I did since you know…” Sissy shrugged and whispered, “You still haven’t exactly grown a spine and told her you like you her yet.”

              “She’s so cute!” Undyne held the alphy bitty she had been given up in the air, “Pap! Look at this.”

              “OH MY STARS! IT’S A TINY ALPHYS.” Papyrus marveled at the small creature.

              “Are these two what you forgot?” Nadia sighed.

              “uh…” Sans coughed awkwardly, “yeah. we kind of forgot to grab them on our way out.”

              “We went back for them though!” Sissy protested.

              “Only after I reminded you that we were two short.” Cyan rolled his eyes.

              “Gah…jeez.” Sissy stuck her tongue out at them, “They’re here now, and they need names!”

              “Allie Jr.” Undyne declared, “Do you like that name?”

              “U-Uh…mhm.” The alphy nodded, still more than a little shy.

              “It’s set then.” Undyne grinned and looked at Alphys, “What about you?”

              “Um…uhh…err…” Dr. Alphys flushed bright red before timidly offering, “Mew?”

              “As in _Mew Mew Kissy Cutie_?” The asagi cocked her head.

              “Yeah…” Dr. Alphys looked ready to try and melt into Granny’s carpet.

              “Okay.” The asagi nodded.        

              “Now the only ones who don’t have bitties are Granny, Asgore, and Asster.” Sissy had managed to rock Greyson to sleep. Gaster growled at the new nickname he’d been assigned, “Now that you’re retiring Granny, you could always get one.”

              “I’ll pass.” Granny was trying on a pair of mittens that Raze had brought with him for some reason, “I already have a multitude of them as great-grandbitties.”

              “Your choice.” Sissy shrugged, “I’m guessing Asgore doesn’t really need any either in that case. I mean, Livvy’s bitties have already adopted him basically.” She looked up at where Snooze had somehow managed to stay on top of Asgore’s head despite all of the moving around.

              “True.” Asgore acknowledged with a smile, “But the main reason is that bitties aren’t allowed in the building I work in. One of the secretaries was using her bitty to collect information to give her politician an edge, so all bitties have been banned from entering.”

              “Well that sucks.” Sissy frowned, “Too bad I can see their logic. Bad owners will be bad owners I guess.”

              “Just means that you’ve got to be a good one.” Granny patted her back, “Now! I need some helpers- who don’t work as chefs already- to help me finish up our Christmas dinner. Who wants to help?”

              “Can we?” Sunshine held his hand up, “We’d love to if you’d let us.”

              “Of course.” Granny looked at Nadia, who was holding Cesar, and Sissy, “Well you two?”

              “Okay. Okay.” Sissy sighed and kissed Sans’s cheek, “Make sure he stays asleep okay?”

              “m’kay.” Sans took the baby from her arms. The sweet, loving look on his face as he looked down at the little guy almost made me want to take a picture of it, “hey there little man.”

              “Granny, are you sure that three women and three bitties can-“ I started.

              “You’re not helping Olivia.” Granny shut me down firmly before leaving the living room, “The TV remote is on the coffee table if you lot want to watch anything.”

              Dr. Alphys and Undyne were too enraptured by their bitties to really care about anything else going on. Asgore had taken a seat on the couch and begun to watch the bitties on the ground all interact while Sans and Gaster sat near each other- Gaster in a nearby arm chair, Sans on the couch- in stony silence. Papyrus tried his best to get the two to engage in a conversation together, but Sans refused to even look at his father.

              _Hmm…Well….I might as well enjoy myself._

              I sat down on Asgore’s lap and stretched out. He didn’t even startle.

              “Well…” I murmured against his neck, staring at the broken Gaster family, “This could be going a lot worse right now I suppose.”

              “It could.” Asgore agreed, “However, I feel bad for Papyrus.”

              “Mm…me too.” I sighed.

              We began to have a normal conversation- if a little flirty- about Christmas. I made sure to tease him about the gift I had gotten him without spoiling the surprise, and he shockingly returned the favor in a way that made me really want to go hunt the little gift down and see what it was. Our sweet banter was cut off by Gaster and Sans actually interacting.

              “I returned to my lab Sans. Where did you take some of my skeleton samples?” Gaster glowered at his son, “We need those to-“

              “restore skeleton kind. i know. it’s why i only took two. i may have a bone to pick with you, but i’m not that much of a jerk.” Sans shrugged.

              “Where are they?” Gaster’s voice warped into something more nightmarish than usual.

              “none of your damn business.” Sans’s voice began to distort as well.

              “It is my business thank you very much. Those two pieces are my responsibility.” Gaster’s body seemed to expand in his anger. He loomed over Sans and Greyson threateningly, “Where are they?”

              “you wake the kid up ya piece of shit.” Raze growled hefting the coffee table over head with his magic, “and i swear ta god i’ll kick yer ass inta next year!”

              “Leave Sans alone!” Tinsel’s eye flared dark red. Atlantic’s eyes flickered deep purple.

              None of the bitties were too happy with Gaster in that moment.

              “i think you’d better back down old man.” Sans gave his father a mockingly blank look, “you don’t want to get on their bad side- especially when they all gang up like this. it’d be a ‘shame’ for you to get offed by a bunch of bitties. the pieces are in a safe place developing at a very slow rate. they’re fine though, so back the hell off.”

              “Gaster.” Asgore sat up straighter and glowered at his friend, “Enough.” His voice boomed loud enough to make Atlantic cringe.

              “But the pieces…” Gaster slowly began to shrink back down.

              “Are more than likely being well taken care of.” Asgore motioned for Gaster to finish sitting back down, “So leave it be.”

              Gaster growled and slumped back down in his chair.

              “good father.” Snooze scolded him sleepily from the top of Asgore’s head, “no threatening sans!”

              “Hmmm…” Gaster’s broken growl sent shivers down my spine. Asgore ran a hand down my back comfortingly and glared at his old friend.

              “Is everything okay in here?” Sissy leaned into the living room.

              “yeah newmore. just having a bit of a disagreement with dr. asster here.” Sans nodded towards his father, “no big deal though.”

              “Oh really?” Sissy raised a brow and looked between the father and son, “What about? Need a referee?”

              “Unless you know where the two pieces of skeleton monsters my son stole from my lab are, you would add nothing to this conversation.” Gaster grumbled.

              “Really Comic?” Sissy frowned at him, “They’re in my womb you fucking idiot, so quit yelling. You’re aggravating Cyan in the kitchen.” After dropping that bombshell, she sauntered on back to the kitchen.

              “nnnneeewwwwmmmooorrreee…” Sans groaned, letting his head flop back against the couch, “why?”

              “What?!” Gaster’s eyes flickered a dangerous shade of green

              “shut up.” Sans gently rocked Greyson as he began to stir, “it’s a slow going experiment and absolutely none of your goddamn business.”

              “Sissy’s got what in her what?” I stared at Sans, completely and utterly dumbfounded.

              “we’re just trying to see if she can safely carry a pure skeleton monster, so i took some of the bones from the lab. they’re developing at a very slow rate because you know…determination and all that. it’s mostly to see what our chances would be like if cross bred.” Sans shrugged, “things are going well so far actually.”

              “Well….I guess you two aren’t waiting until after the wedding after all.” Dr. Alphys laughed.

              “it might take a year and a half at this rate in all honesty.” Sans frowned, “assuming nothing bad happens. i’d rather have to put them in a tank than risk newmore dying on me. still, we’re hoping for a 12-14 month long pregnancy period instead of a 16-18 month one. it’s going to just get harder.”

              “I’m not made of glass Comic!” Sissy called from the kitchen.

              “her hearing scares me sometimes…” Waltzer shuddered.

              “me too man.” Blake patted his back.

              Understandably, Christmas dinner was filled with everyone all but drilling holes into Sans and Sissy over their decision. The two mostly deflected everything and comforted a stray concern all while trying to get us to focus our attention elsewhere. The conversation that Gaster needed to move into a more private, quiet area ended up being the one that took the light off of them.

              “You need a place to stay Dr. Gaster?” Granny raised a brow, “Well, I suppose you can’t keep living with his majesty forever.”

              “It’s more so about the noise.” Asgore replied because Gaster was in the middle of swallowing something, “City life isn’t really agreeing with him.”

              “My doors are always open.” Granny offered, “I’ll be living here permanently because of my retirement. There’s plenty of space.”

              “You’d let a random stranger live in your house?” Gaster gave her a ‘how stupid are you’ look that didn’t set off her temper- miraculously.

              “You’re no stranger. You’re my future grandson-in-law’s father.” Granny flicked some beans at Sans when he made a disgusted face, “It wouldn’t be any trouble for me at _all_.”

              “Hmmm….” Gaster went silent.

              “I-I think he’ll think about it.” Dr. Alphys coughed, “It’s a-a b-big deal you know?” Mew nodded in agreement.

              “It would be a better arrangement compared to living life as an eternal cock block at Asgore’s house.” Sissy winked at me, “Gotta have that home away from home right?”

              “That’s what Chez Newmore is!” I threw a napkin at her.

              “You’ve done it at work?” The teasing glint in Sissy’s eyes told me that she new I hadn’t done so, but she was going to mess with me about it anyways.

              “No!” I said firmly.

              The table devolved into fits of laughter at that.

              _It’s so warm._

_I love it._

              Papyrus was having a sleep over with all of my bitties in the room I used to share with Nadia growing up. He still believed in Santa Claus, so all of us decided to put the more naive bitties in there with him as well.

              “This was pleasant.” Asgore pulled me closer when I slid into bed beside him. His poor feet were still hanging off the end of the bed, but he didn’t seem to really care about that, “Thank you for inviting me.”

              “Of course. I mean…you’re my boyfriend after all.” I snuggled into his chest, “If my parents weren’t total jerks-“ And could be _found_ , “- I would’ve had you meet them already.” It never ceased to shock me at how serious we had already become in such a short amount of time. _Don’t get greedy Olivia. Don’t go assuming things. You guys aren’t like Sans and Sissy._

              “I still think of it as a privilege.” Asgore kissed the top of my head, “I don’t think I’ve had many familial experiences since…” He went quiet.

              “Your children?” I murmured, leaning my head up to look at him. He nodded quietly, “I’m sorry.”

              “I am too. They probably would’ve loved this. Chara never mentioned Christmas in the Underground…” Asgore’s unfocused eyes hinted that he was back in a faraway memory, “One cannot bring back the dead however.” He sighed.

              “No, but you can remember them always.” I kissed his cheek, “I don’t know if monsters have a concept of heaven and hell, but if you do, they’re in the good one smiling at you- I’m sure of it.”

              “Thank you.” Asgore squeezed me into a tight hug, “That means more to me than you could ever know.”

              “It’s no problem.” I nuzzled his neck.

              “I hope that the experiment Sans and Josephine are conducting works out well for them.” Asgore sighed.

              “The skeleton babes?” He nodded, “I do too. I’m shocked that Sans actually did it though. He seemed so worried about the mortality rates at Thanksgiving…”

              “He more than likely double and triple checked his numbers to make sure that this would have the highest possible chances of working.” Asgore comforted me once he noticed how anxious the news was making me, “You heard him didn’t you? He won’t risk her life easily, so one can imagine that they discussed this for days.”

              “Yeah…” I agreed. _It still makes me nervous though._

              The next morning was filled with chaos and enough noise to make Cyan and Atlantic opt to stay upstairs until the more hyper members of our family calmed down. Granny and Sissy must’ve brought in more gifts from ‘Santa’ while the rest of us were sleeping because they were the only two tired.

              “Oh…Granny.” Undyne blinked at the box, “You didn’t have to get me anything.”

              “I wanted to angelfish.” Granny yawned, “You and Alphys are practically family at this rate. Alphys, dear, did you find yours from me?”

              “Um…no…uh…” Dr. Alphys looked at the tree and frowned. Mew helped her look around quietly, “O-oh! I did.”

              “PAPA!” Papyrus handed Gaster a rather poorly wrapped gift, “FROM ME TO YOU!”

              “For me?” Gaster blinked. Papyrus nodded and held the gift closer to his father’s face.

              It was just a simple sweater, but Gaster had to excuse himself to avoid being too emotional in front of Sans.

              _I never realized there could be so much wrapping paper on a floor…._

              Eventually, Sissy, who had been the one helping hand out presents to excited bitties and relaxed monsters and humans, sat down and began to open her gifts. She found most them sweet and amusing. A ball of anxiety curled up in me when her hand drifted over my present. Sissy had given me a beautifully crafted handmade dress with a matching purse and pair of shoes some of her friends in Germany made, so I could only hope that she would appreciate my gift as much as I did hers.

              She opened it and stared at the box’s contents for a couple of seconds, unblinking.

              “Josephine?” Nadia nudged Sissy with a empty wrapping paper roll, “Phine?”

              “They’re beautiful Olivia.” Sissy picked up the carefully crafted scrapbooks and began to look through them. There were four in there. One of them had just images of her, Nadia, and I growing up- jut happy ones of course. Another had some of the images of her and Sans, and the third one had a couple of pictures of Greyson. The scrapbooks had all been hand made by a friend of mine and meticulously decorated by the bitties and I, “Thank you…I can’t wait to fill them.”

              The gentle, astonished look in her eyes made me feel like I could fly in that moment.

              “oh yeah…” Sans sat up from where he had been dozing on his back and been covered in wrapping paper, “here ya go.”

              He tossed something at Sissy, and she caught it with one hand, blinking. Then she saw what it was and rolled her eyes.

              “Really?” She sighed, sliding the engagement ring on, “You kept forgetting to give it to me didn’t you?”

              “….yeeeahh…” Sans shrugged, “you said you didn’t care…soo….”

              “I don’t you idiot.” Sissy laughed and blew him a kiss, “Jeez.”

              “That has got to be the least romantic proposal I think I’ve ever seen.” Nadia sighed.

              “Aww…” Dr. Alphys seemed to agree with her.

              “it’s better that she actually gets it instead of having to deal with him continuously screwing things up.” Waltzer argued, “do you want to _know_ how many proposal attempts have just gone ‘poof’?”

              “Luck hasn’t exactly been on his side.” Sunshine agreed.

              “let’s please not discuss how terribly my attempts at proposing have gone please.” Sans threw a ball of discarded wrapping paper at them.

              “Do I want to hear this?” Sissy asked Blake.

              “some of them _were_ pretty funny…”

              “Ha…” Asgore chuckled softly beside me.

              _So…it’s official. Sans and Sissy are getting married…_

              I looked up at Asgore, and ideas that really shouldn’t have been in my head that early on in the relationship began to play.

              _No. One day at a time Olivia. **One day**._

              Our first Christmas as more than a jagged family concluded with us learning that Gaster would be moving in with Granny. The two had hashed things out in the middle of the night, and they decided that it would probably be the best for him.

              _I can’t believe it. A holiday that didn’t end terribly. Is this come kind of Christmas miracle?_

              Oh how could I forget about the one damn thing that really bit me in the ass in the first place!?


	28. Change

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I own nothing. Full disclaimer/links can be found in Ch1
> 
> I'll be honest. I meant to write these sooner...but...I got distracted by YouTube videos. I've kind of been spiraling in a cute animal video and faith in humanity restored video vortex for the last few hours. xP I'll get the last two done tonight though! Even if I have to stay up until midnight.

              “BROTHER!” Papyrus scooped his brother up into a hug, “HELLO!”

              “hi pap.” Sans wheezed out a chuckle and patted his brothers arms.

              “ARE YOU EXCITED FOR TODAY?” Papyrus sat Sans back down and beamed down at him, “I AM!”

              “i am too pap.” Sans tucked his hands into his pockets and looked back at where Sissy and Granny were talking about Greyson, “i think newmore and i could both definitely use a break.”

              “Do you guys need us to babysit sometime?” I offered, frowning. Sissy and Sans never really imposed on anyone when it came to their bitties or Greyson. The two were lucky that Sissy worked from home to begin with, but even the best of parents could go a bit stir crazy.

              “no.” Sans shook his head, “we’ve got it covered. little breaks like these go a long way in the long run.”

              “WE’LL JUST HAVE TO MAKE TODAY THE BEST DAY YOU’VE HAD IN A LONG WHILE THEN!” Papyrus declared, “I’LL MAKE SURE OF IT.”

              “thanks pap.” Sans turned back to look at Sissy and Granny, “is it okay if pap and i go on ahead newmore? we might be late to the movie otherwise.”

              “Hm?” Sissy looked over her shoulder, “Go right ahead bone baby. Text me when you get to the theatre though. Stay safe- both of you.”

              “WE WILL IET!” Papyrus promised her.

              The two brothers left to enjoy a day of brotherly bonding and fun. A flicker of silver caught my eye as Sans passed, and I quickly deduced that Sissy probably planned on proposing to _him_ if he didn’t finally give her the engagement ring considering the fact I had seen her buy that silver ring two months ago. _Sissy can be so impatient sometimes._

              “Granny, are you certain you can tend to almost all of the bitties and Greyson on your own?” I looked down to see that Sunshine, Raze, Harley, and Willoughby were having a quiet, low conversation by the couch, and Hiro was already bugging December, Idjit, and Cyan.

              “I’m getting old, but I’m not an invalid yet.” Granny snorted, “It shouldn’t be too bad since Nadia is taking the little trouble maker with her.”

              “I AM NOT A TROUBLE MAKER.” Cesar growled from Nadia’s arms.

              “and my name is tango.” Waltzer snorted, “you’re the only one who really causes problems.”

              “ONLY BECAUSE YOU LOT PICK FIGHTS WITH ME!” Cesar snarled, looking ready to leap from Nadia’s arms.

              “it’s not our fault you have a short temper.” Blake shrugged and threw a grape at him. Nadia caught it before it could hit him, but it still angered the boss all the same, “you really need to take a chill pill man.”

              “RRRRRR…”

              “Sh Cesar.” Nadia turned away from where Waltzer and Blake were sitting, “They’re just _trying_ to make you angry at this rate.”

              “I’ll be fine.” Granny insisted, “Olivia? Are you taking Lace with you?”

              “Yeah. The little guy likes the sound of hair dryers, so I figured a salon would be his dream place to go.” I had caught Lace sitting in front of my blow dryer on more than one occasion, happily listening to the noises it made, “Willoughby is fine with it.”

              “jUsT sTaY sAfE..” Willoughby wrung his hands nervously.

              “Do you want me to go with them too?” Harley offered, slinging one arm around Willoughby’s shoulders, “I could.”

              “nO.” Willoughby shook his head, “hE’s NoT lITtLe AnYmOrE….”

              “It’s understandable to be nervous.” Sunshine patted his upper arm, “Raze wouldn’t stop following Tinsel around when he first started to teleport around.”

              “….grrrr….” Raze flushed bright red. Sunshine just leant back and kissed his cheek.

              “You know it’s true.” Sunshine nuzzled into him happily.

              “Hmph.” Raze wrapped an arm around his waist protectively.

              “We’d better get moving.” Sissy checked the time on her phone, “Our appointment is in twenty minutes, and you’re both in heels.”

              “We’ll probably beat you to the door.” Nadia snorted, “You aren’t bringing any of your bitties with you?”

              “Nope.” Sissy shook her head and gave Granny one last look, “Call me if there’s any trouble.” She clapped her hands to get her bitties’ attention, “You boys behave for Granny and help her look after Greyson. Flowey, you behave too.”

              The flower monster flicked a bunch of pellets at her. She caught them with one hand. They cut her palm, but she didn’t even react to the assault. After glaring at the flower until he tucked down _behind_ his flower pot, Sissy led the way to the front door, more than eager to break free of the condo.

              “The fresh air.” She took a deep breath, “Ahhhhh….”

              “I’d ask if you’ve thought of getting a nanny, but I know how you feel about those.” Nadia shut the door behind us.

              “Fuck nannies.” Sissy grumbled, the beginning of her good mood fading into nothingness, “I’m never letting a nanny anywhere near my kids. Their bitty uncles and Flowey will just have to do.”

              “Even when you have the twins?” I questioned. Lace leaned in closer to Sissy to hear her reply as well.

              “Especially then! Do you think I’m gonna let some random stranger come feeling up on my monster children? Fuck that shit. Hell, I’ll probably homeschool all my little brats until they’re big enough to knock someone flat on their ass.” Sissy’s swearing made more than one mother glower at her, probably wondering how the hell she had kids, “Ain’t nobody going to get away with beating on my kids- period.”

              “You intend to let them be the beaters then?” Nadia raised a brow.

              “Only in self-defense.” Sissy amended.

              “You really worry me sometimes.” I laughed despite my worry. Sissy just stuck her tongue out at me.

              _She wouldn’t have been able to do this before. Hell, none of us would be walking like this together about two years ago. Nadia would still be a raging bitch married to that jackass Edgar. I’d still be stuck as her little office slave, and Sissy would be wilting away in her old shitty apartment….so much has changed....Which is why we’re doing this I guess._

              The new year was fast approaching, and we’d all come a long way from where we started. After thinking long and hard about it, we decided that one thing that definitely need to change was our hair. The heavy tresses- each of us had hair practically down to our waist- were kind of like chains to the past.

              Sissy and Nadia had their hair long because Edgar liked it that way. Neither of them had really ever thought to cut it, but they jumped at the idea when I brought it up. The two seemed eager to metaphorically cut Edgar out of their life in a literal sense.

              I had my hair long because my parents wanted me to be their little beauty. My hair had never been allowed past my shoulders once it grew out long enough. My parents never gave a damn about my physical health as long as I looked good enough and behaved well enough to sit on some rich bitch’s lap looking like a porcelain doll for three hours. The leaden locks dragged me down each time I looked at them and remembered why they were still on top of my head.

              “HUMANS CAN CUT THEIR HAIR?” Cesar finally asked, “THAT ISN’T A PAINFL PROCESS?”

              “Painful?” Sissy cocked her head at him, “Well…uh…I guess you can’t exactly speak from experience huh? Human hair is dead. We don’t feel anything in it unless someone is tugging it, and even then, we only feel pain at the scalp.”

              “So it only hurts whenever someone is too rough while handling it.” Nadia added, seeing a bit of confusion brewing on Cesar’s face, “It’s why I don’t like it when you tug on my hair. It hurts.”

              “OH.” Cesar blinked, “I SEE…HMM…SO IT’S A GROOMING RITUAL OF SORTS THEN?”

              “Sure.” Sissy sighed, “If that helps you understand it, yeah, it’s a grooming ritual. Kind of like shaving and brushing your teeth.”

              “SHAVING?” Cesar looked up at Nadia.

              “When I put the bladed instrument to my legs and remove the hair. You flipped out the first time you watched me do it.” Nadia reminded him gently.

              “OH THAT…..THERE WAS BLOOD THEN.”

              Sissy raised her brow at Nadia.

              “He startled me, so I accidentally cut myself.” Nadia blushed.

              “Well, finding someone you love putting a knife to their skin for a reason you don’t understand has to be pretty scary.” I came to Cesar’s defense, “Besides, it’s not like bitties need to shave or anything.”

              “Some of them do.” Nadia corrected me, “Some require delicate grooming for the betterment of their health.”

              “ _Most_ bitties then.” I sighed.

              “Well…do heats count?” Sissy pursed her lips.

              “No!” I kicked at the back of her leg.

              “What? It’s something every bitty owner has to deal with at some point, so can’t it be classified alongside grooming?” Sissy protested.

              “You have to deal with bitty heats?” Nadia cocked her head.

              “Of course not. The bitties deal with that themselves. They’d rather die than approach anyone else about it. They do like to pretend Comic and I don’t do the laundry though…” Sissy made a grossed out face, “Ugh….I guess they’re no worse than my fiancé is though.”

              “I do not want to be subjected to long conversations about the sex life of your bitties or you.” Nadia interrupted her before she could continue, “To put it simply: _Stop_.”

              “Fine, fine.” Sissy shrugged, “It was just a curious thought.”

              “Your brain is so perverted.” I grumbled.

              “Oh like you never get horny.” Sissy rolled her eyes.

              “I didn’t say I don’t!” _I have way too many wet dreams about Asgore to not get horny._

              “I don’t want to hear about yours either.” Nadia sighed and brought Cesar up closer to her face to bury her face by his neck and sigh.

              “YOU’VE BROKEN MY MOTHER.” Cesar growled at us. Lace snapped his teeth back at him which seemed to only amuse the boss, “WELL, I GUESS YOUR NOT AS BAD AS THE OTHER TWO.”

              “You saying you don’t like my little hybrids Cesar?” Sissy shot him a dangerous look.

              “THEY’RE BRATS.” Cesar snorted, “I LIKE THAT ONE THOUGH.”

              “That one has a name.” I pointed out, “Lace.”

              “I’M NOT- THERE’S A PERSON MOTHER, PLEASE LOOK UP BEFORE YOU SEND US BOTH INTO A GARBAGE CAN- THAT FORGETFUL.” Cesar actually stuck his tongue out at me. _You spoiled little piece of shit in a custom made suit!_

              Any further comments were cut off by the salon appearing in the distance. We hurried inside, and the staff actually had been waiting on us because some of their earlier appointments had canceled. After a few apologizes and describing how we wanted our hair to look, our stylists for the day began to cut our hair.

              Shockingly, Nadia was the one who went the shortest. Her deep golden main had been shrunken down to reach only about an inch from her scalp. Sissy kept her hair at shoulder length, but she did decide to buy something to help style her hair more. I went for a cute looking bob that had to be the least serious out of the three of us.

              We stared in the mirror for a long time. The stylists seemed to get a bit nervous at how quiet we were being. They probably wouldn’t have been able to understand even if we explained what was going through our heads. For as long as we could honestly remember, our hair had been long. Nothing had changed that. Now… _we_ had changed it.

              “Mother would probably shriek if she saw this.” Nadia smiled at her reflection in the mirror. _When’s the last time I ever saw her do that?_

              “Oh she would.” Sissy agreed, smirking at her own reflection, “She’d throw a massive fit and try to get us to get hair extensions.”

              “Um….” One of the stylists spoke up, “Do you like them.”

              “Of course we do!” I gave her a warm, soothing smile to help her and the other two stylists calm down some, “We love what you guys did. Please excuse our rather random ramblings.”

              All three of them practically sagged in relief.

              “HMMM….” Cesar hadn’t stopped staring at Nadia.

              “Do you like it?” She asked, sounding a little bit nervous.

              “IT SUITS YOU.” He said noncommittally.

              “Well Lace, it’s time to head to dinner.” I kissed the top of my hybrid bitty’s head, “Did you think about what you might like to eat?”

              Lace shook his head.

              “Oh, we might want to check on Asster first. Granny said that he was slinking through town to get some last minute things for the move.” Sissy remembered suddenly.

              “Does he not have a phone?” Nadia frowned.

              “The doesn’t like the noises they make.” Sissy sighed, “He’s blown up three with his blasters.”

              “I thought the Underground had cellphones….” I tilted my head to the side.

              “Asgore claims his wife was the one who controlled the phone. He kept breaking them or keeping them turned off to avoid being startled during experiments.” Sissy shrugged, “He’s gotta be close by though. All of the stores Granny said he was swinging by are near here.”

              “We’ll look for him then.” I nodded.

              We paid for our haircuts and actually told the ladies they could always give our long hair to some wig company if they wanted to. We weren’t using it after all.

              “Where was Gaster supposed to be?” I questioned. Sissy rattled off a list of stores that  I really didn’t recognize, but I nodded along with Nadia anyways.

              “I’m surprised Grandmother offered to let him stay.” Nadia said while looking around like the rest of us for the disfigured skeleton scientist, “She wasn’t exactly pleased with him or the brothers after the dinner reintroduction.”

              “Bah, you know Granny. She’s a big softie at heart.” Sissy chuckled and then yelled out Gaster’s name, making a lot of people nearby jump. When she didn’t get a response she sighed and waited a couple of seconds before doing it again.

              “I wouldn’t know.” Nadia muttered. I had tried talking to Granny about it, but in her eyes, it was still Nadia and our parents versus her precious Joey. It would take a little longer than I had hoped for the two to begin to get along.

              “JEEZ GASTER!” Sissy yelled at the top of her lungs, “You shouldn’t be this hard to find man!”

              “Maybe all of your yelling is actually scaring him off?” Nadia teased.

              “….holy shit it might.” Sissy went into deep thought.

              Lace tensed on my arms.

              “Lace?” I looked down at the bitty. He tapped the side of his head- in the place where he would’ve had ears if he were human- and pointed across the street. I focused my attention there and practically froze.

              It was a group of people dressed all in black. They were arguing among themselves about something, but I could match some their descriptions to what my staff had told me. _These…these are the people who worked with the bastards who killed Ilya._

              The bitty fighting ring was still out to get me apparently.

              And they intended to solve that problem then and there.

              A gun was aimed at me from across the street. Sissy and Nadia had noticed me freezing. Sissy’s eyes followed mine across the street. Nadia’s trailed after.

              When the gunshots rang out, both of them dove towards me.

              _No. No. No. No. No. No. No._

I closed my eyes and screamed, clutching Lace close and desperately wishing for it to be over.

              I expected a spray of blood to cover my face and one of my sisters to go limp against me.

              Instead, both were protectively shielding me with Nadia in a position to protect both Sissy and I from any bullets. Panting in shock, adrenaline rushing in our veins, we looked up to find the tall, billowy form of Gaster looming in front of us.

              His eyes were flames of blue and orange as pairs of his hands began to form around him. They cut across the street and wrapped themselves around our would be attackers, slamming them to the street as hard as they could.

              “Holy shit.” Nadia sagged against me. She cradled Cesar close and was almost crying in relief. Sissy stayed crouched over me protectively until she heard sirens. Even then, she didn’t sag as the adrenaline left her. She stayed alert and aware, watching the idiots with wide, wild eyes as they were placed into various police cars.

              Gaster dropped the bullets his magic had kind of crushed into an evidence bag the police officers offered him before looking at the three of us.

              “Thanks.” Sissy finally said, “Really. Thank you.”

              “Hmmm…” Gaster didn’t say a thing.

              Everything in me broke like a damn.

              “Gaster!” I  flung the arm that wasn’t holding a distressed Lace around him and pulled him into a crushing hug, “Thankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyou.”

              One of Gaster’s hands actually patted the top of my head.

              _Gah. We would’ve been toast if Sissy hadn’t been kicking up such a fuss about finding him._

_Fuck_

_Shit._

_Damn!_

_Why can’t these little mother fucking micropenis, saggy vagina pieces of molten shit just leave us alone when we take one of their victims!?_

              I was just glad that no one had to get hurt that day.


	29. I Love You

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I own nothing. Full disclaimer/links can be found in Ch1
> 
> Holy shit it might actually end up being midnight before I'm done XD. It's 10:59 right now :P

              “newmore!” Sans launched himself at my sister the instant he spotted her. The shorter skeleton practically picked her up out of joyful relief, “holyshitwheniheardtherewasagunshotinvolvedithoughtyouhadgoneoffandgottenyourselfshotorsomethingbecauseyoucanbesodamnimpuslivesometimeswhydoyouliketodothistome?areyoutryingtogivemegraypatchesalready!?”

              “Comic.” Sissy wriggled one of her arms free to rub circles in his head, “I’m fine. I’m fine. Calm down….and I’m not that impulsive!” Sans pulled back and gave her a flat look, “What?”

              “i can’t even really stay mad at you right now.” He sighed, clinking his teeth against her cheek.

              “But you’ll definitely get mad later because you always do.” Sissy sighed.

              “LIVI!” Papyrus patted my head and down my arms, checking for any injuries, “ARE YOU AND LACE ALRIGHT?”

              “Olivia?” Asgore stood off to my side. His eyes glittered with worry and tempered rage, “Are you okay? Did Gaster get all of them.”

              “Yes sire.” Gaster, who sat slumped beside Nadia on a nearby bench in the police station, nodded, “All of their attackers were captured and accounted for.”

              “Only one person pulled the trigger though.” Nadia sighed.

              “Lace and I are fine.” I assured Papyrus. Lace reached up for the tall skeleton, and Papyrus happily tugged him close and patted his back, “We’re just a little shaken up.”

              “I thought that this had ended with Ilya.” Asgore looked over to where some of the suspects were handcuffed to the benches they sat on. Realizing that who it was that was glaring at them, some of the smarter idiots recoiled from his gaze.

              “I did too.” I sighed, “Thankfully, Gaster was there. There’s no telling where those bullets would’ve gone otherwise.”

              Sans placed Sissy on the ground and hesitated before looking over at his father.

              “she telling the truth newmore?” Sans grasped on of Sissy’s hands, intertwining their fingers into a bond that would be hard to break.

              “Yup.” Sissy nodded. Sans and Gaster stared at each other for a couple of seconds when Sissy rested her forehead against the side of Sans’s head, “Just say it already you boneheaded dunce.”

              “thanks.” Sans gritted the words out. He paused and then added in a softer voice, “i don’t know what i’d do without her, so…thank-you for keeping her safe.”

              “…It wasn’t difficult.” Gaster looked away.

              “PAPA!” Papyrus threw an arm around his father and squeezed him close enough that Gaster actually found himself short of breath, “THANK YOU! YOU RESCUED MY BESTEST HUMAN FRIEND IN THE WHOLE WORLD- AND HER SISTERS TOO! THANK YOU.”

              “It was no problem.” Gaster mumbled, blushing under the sudden affection, “There were only four bullets.”

              “You still managed to stop all four of them.” Nadia patted his back, “Just say you’re welcome already.”

              “You’re welcome.” Gaster slouched further down.

              “I’m glad that you’re alright.” Asgore rested his paws on my waist and leaned down to nuzzle his head against mine.

              “Well, some people think that we’ve got nine lives or something.” I tried my best to lighten the mood some by wrapping my arms around his neck and kissing him, “We’re all fine though.”

              “I take it that those who can be charged will be dealt with to the fullest extent of human law?” Asgore raised a brow.

              “But of course.” Tyrone Jones, one of Sissy’s closest friends and one of the best- if not _the_ best- lawyers in Grayridge, hung up his phone and approached us, “I’ll have these guys dealt with Etta. Don’t worry about it. They won’t be hurting little Liv any time soon.”

              “Thanks man.” Sissy sighed in relief and fist bumped him, “Can we get some restraining orders on the sickos or something if they can’t get jail time?”

              “I’ll figure something out.” Tyrone patted her shoulder.

              “I’ll leave it in your hands then.” Sissy winked at him, “Do me proud worrywart.”

              “Sure thing.” Tyrone nodded.

              I had never been so happy to see my apartment before. After hours of going over what happened again and again, bringing up past events, and throwing those jackasses under as many buses as I could, I just wanted to get into a nice, hot bath and pretend that the rest of the world didn’t really exist at all. Papyrus had left me to go get the bitties from Sissy’s house and bring them back home, so I knew that I was going to have more than a few little guys worrying about me.

              “mama!” Hiro latched onto my leg.

              “Mom.” Harley teleported onto my shoulder and began looking around my head, neck, and torso for any signs of injury, “Are you okay? Were you hit? Wait- no…you’d be in the hospital if you were.”

              “mimi?” Snooze looked up at me with teary eyes, “you almost got hurt…”

              “OlIvIa…” Willoughby also grabbed onto one of my legs, “DoN’t WoRrY uS lIkE tHaT…”

              Lace had hobbled over to me as well.

              “Aww…babies.” I cooed, picking them all up, “I’m fine. Shh…guuuyysss…You’re going to make me cry with how adorable you’re being. Staaahhpp.”

              “i was so worried about you mama.” Hiro buried his face into my shoulder.

              “I’m sorry sweetheart.”

              “LIVI?” Papyrus leaned out from the kitchen, “I HAVEN’T TAKEN A SHOWER YET, SO THE WATER SHOULD STILL BE HOT.”

              “You’re a blessing Papyrus.” I kissed the air in his direction. I looked down at my bitties, “Does anyone want to take a nice bath with me? I’m thinking about cracking open one of the bath salts…”

              They all said yes.

              It was when I was stretched out in the bathtub with all of my bitties either curled up on some part of my body or floating around absentmindedly that I really began to think about how lucky and unlucky I was at the same time.

              On one hand, this had definitely not been my year. Between the family drama, opening my own business, the critic, adopting more bitties, falling in love with someone literally above my station, and having to deal with bitty fighting rings, I was fucking surprised I hadn’t gone insane! Who in their right mind who want that much trouble crammed into what should’ve been 12 normal months of their life?

              On the other, this year had definitely been my year at the same time. I would end the year having a very sweet, kind boyfriend, and new bitties were making my life all the more enjoyable. I also had begun to build up a proper relationship with my sisters and watched as their relationship flourished. Why would anyone want to give up so many blessings in such a short amount of time? Normally people ended up having to wait years for so many amazing things to happen.

              “mimi?” Snooze tapped my jaw to get my attention.

              “Mmm?” I kissed the top of his head, “Yes?”

              “you’re thinking.” Snooze rested his head against my neck.

              “I am.” I laughed. _Should I feel insulted about that….? I won’t bother._ I slid one of my legs up and tugged a dozing Willoughby to rest higher up. He would’ve drowned otherwise.

              “about what?” Hiro asked, splashing me some in his excitement, “something good i hope?”

              “Just reflecting on everything that’s happened.” I flicked some water back his way.

              “In a good light or a bad one?” Harley yawned from where he was all but submerged in the water.

              “A bit of both honestly.” I shrugged, catching a sleeping Lace before the mentally and physically exhausted little guy could fall into the water and drown, “It’s been that kind of year after all.”

              The bitties who were paying attention to me nodded in agreement.

              “LIVI? CAN I COME IN?” Papyrus knocked on the door.

              “Sure. I’m naked under the water though.” I warned. Papyrus peeked in and decided that enough of me was covered for him to enter without blushing too much, “What’s up?”

              “HOW ARE YOU HOLDING UP?” Papyrus put the toilet seat down and sat down, hunching over and frowning, “THE MOVIE MY BROTHER AND I WENT TO SEE….THERE WERE PEOPLE WHO GOT SHOT IN IT. IT LOOKED LIKE IT WOULD HURT.”

              “Well, I’m pretty sure Sissy would back that belief.” I laughed, “But I didn’t get hurt Papyrus. Your dad stopped them.”

              “HE DID.” Papyrus looked so proud.

              “So there’s no need to worry. I’ll admit that I am still a bit anxious and scared.” The irrational part of my brain kept insisting that more of the creeps would burst through my front door and mow all of us down, “I know that’s silly though.”

              “IT IS.” Papyrus agreed, “BECAUSE THE GREAT PAPYRUS WILL PROTECT YOU!”

              “Thanks.” I giggled. Even though I knew that he really wouldn’t be able to do _too_ much if someone actually came bursting through, the declaration of protection warmed me all the same, “Could we talk about something else though? I really don’t want to keep thinking about it if I can avoid it…”

              “OH UM…WHAT ARE YOU DOING FOR NEW YEAR’S?” Papyrus offered weakly, “YOU SAID THAT YOU WOULDN’T BE COMING OVER TO MY BROTHER’S WITH ME, SO I’M CURIOUS.”

              “Asgore and I are going to go on a date.” I explained, “It was _supposed_ to be the first time he saw my new haircut, but the creeps kind of ruined that for me huh?”

              “IT’S A VERY CUTE LOOK BY THE WAY!” Papyrus reached out and ran one hand through the damp locks.

              “Thanks. The stylist took forever to get it just right.” The freedom my neck felt at not having a ton of hair constantly wrapped around it made my entire body feel lighter, “I’m starting to wish I had them put some orange high lights in it or something.”

              “WHY ORANGE?” Papyrus’s fingers picked at his scarf out of habit.

              “So I can match my bestest monster friend!” I splashed Papyrus with some water, waking Lace and Willoughby up in the process.

              “TRICKERY!” Papyrus cried while I laughed uncontrollably.

              “Not trickery.” I corrected him, “Cleverness.”

              “GAH!” Papyrus filled one of our ‘rinse cups’ in the sink and dumped the cold water over my head.

              “Oh it’s on now Papyrus! It’s war!”

              We really fucked up our bathroom…..

              _I hope we don’t end up having mold on the ceiling. There’s no telling the kind of questions our landlady would ask if we had to ask for repairs…._

              I was toweling my hair dry when my phone rang.

              “Hello?” I asked after Harley put it on speaker phone for me.

              “Olivia?” Granny’s worried voice made me smile sadly, “Gaster told me what happened. Are you alright?”

              “I’m fine Granny.” I laughed, tossing my towel over to Hiro and Snooze to put in the dirty clothes pile, “If Gaster told you, you should know that he stopped the bullets before they reached us.”

              “Still….you’re more….” Granny paused, “..sensitive than your sisters.”

              “I’m fine Granny.” I insisted firmly, not liking the way this conversation was turning, “I might be young and inexperienced, but I’m not going to let these guys control my entire life.”

              _I won’t live my life in fear. I **won’t** dammit._

              “It’s understandable to be a little scared right now Olivia. Someone tried to shoot you earlier today. I shudder to think at what might’ve happened if Gaster hadn’t been there…”

Nadia or Sissy could’ve died. That’s what would’ve happened. I would’ve been sheltered under their warm bodies, tucked safely away from the spray of bullets, and they would’ve had holes drilled into them. There’s no telling where the bullets would’ve landed either. Sissy’s babies could have ended up injured too.

              “It’s not good to live a life of maybes.” I smiled at the bit of advice Asgore gave me made me think of him, “We all survived, and the sigma bitty fighting ring is going down in the process.”

              Raze, who had come back with Sans, had recognized more than a few of the creeps. It took both Sans and Sissy to keep Raze from trying to off some of the defenseless bastards. _I don’t think those assholes will have an easy time in court **at all** ….Good._

              It took another ten minutes of flat platitudes and calm assurances until Granny was pulled away by Gaster to talk about something she described as ‘ridiculous, but somewhat serious’. _Since when do they get along so well?_

              I needed to call Asgore and let him know I was back in the apartment safe and sound. Sadly, during my stint at the police station, he’d been called back to work. He’d left more than a little reluctant, but I reminded him that he had duties to people other than me. The conflicted face he had made sparked the urge to kiss the worry lines out of his brow in me….that would’ve probably been too much of a PDA though, so I held my feelings in check.

              “Hey Asgo.” I poured some of my typical cheerfulness into the greeting in an attempt to brighten his mood.

              “Olivia.” Asgore sighed in relief, “How are you?”

              “Good. I took a bath right when I got home, and Papyrus is making dinner right now.” I began to pull on a pair of fuzzy socks to keep my cold feet warm, “How are you doing? It sounded like all hell broke loose earlier.”             

              “It did.” Asgore grumbled, “Someone misfiled something and that led to a string of events that resulted in a handful of near tragedies almost slipping through the cracks.”

              “Can’t be more specific?” I cocked my head.

              “Classified information I’m afraid.” Asgore said sheepishly, “I’m sorry.”

              “It’s fine.” He worked for the government after all, “Did you manage to get everything sorted out in the end at least?”

              “I did. I found it harder to do so because I was worried about you, but my tasks for the day were accomplished in a timely manner.”

              “Asgo…” I blushed, “You didn’t need to fret about me. I’m a Newmore. We’ve got skin of steel- metaphorically.”

              “Too bad it isn’t physically that way too hmm?” Asgore chuckled, “Are you still feeling up to our date on New Year’s?”

              “Of course!” I balked at the idea of cancelling this soon, “Absolutely! It sucks that you’ve already seen my hair though. I wanted that to be a surprise…”

              “It looked good on you.” Asgore made a soft noise that I recognized as one of affection, “I’m sorry that your surprise for me was ruined though. I know how much that kind of stuff means to you.”

              “At least you liked it. I’m enjoying not having to sit down and meticulously untangle every inch of my hair.” My sisters were probably also enjoying that was well. They did have the harder to manage hair after all.

              “I would like it even if you had shaved your head bald.” Asgore answered honestly. My heart fluttered a little bit.

              “No you wouldn’t.” I blushed.

              “I would.”

              Cue one of the pettiest yet cutest couple arguments I had ever had. I even stretched out on my bed like teenagers do in cheesy romcoms.

              “LIVI! DINNER IS READY!” Papyrus called from the living room. Hiro and Snooze guided Lace and Wiloughby out of the bedroom.

              “So quit flirting with your goatman already.” Harley swatted me with a pillow.

              “Is something going on?” Asgore questioned me.

              “Dinner is ready, and Harley has grown sick of us being so sappy.” I giggled when my lil’ bro hit me again, “I’ve got to go Asgore. I love you.” _Oh fffffffffffuuuu-_

              “I understand. I love you too. I’ll see you on New Year’s.”

              My brain short circuited for about two minutes while Harley kept hitting me with a pillow to get me to get up.

              “You just said I love you!” He hit me again, “It’s not that big of a deal Mom.”

              “Ohmygodit’sahugefuckingdealandheactuallysaiditback,butIwantedtotellhimonNewYear’sassomekindofsymbolicthingofournewrelationship,butIfuckeditupbecauseIforgotandaaaaahhhhh….”

              “oLiViA?” Willoughby poked his head in, “iS sOmEtHiNg WrOnG?”

              “She’s freaking out because she and Asgore just officially said “I love you”, and she didn’t mean for it to happen this way.” Harley flopped down on my bed panting in exhaustion, “It’s not a big deal right?”

              “nO oNe HaS eVeR rEaLlY tOlD mE tHaT tHeY lOvEd Me In A rOmAnTiC wAy BeFoRe, So I dOn’T kNoW.” Willoughby had managed to accept that his relationship with Inigo was a little bit twisted after months of therapy. He still hadn’t pieced together a lot of the larger parts of their relationship.

              “I love you.” Harley said bluntly, “How about that?”

              Willoughby burned bright purple.

              “Oh come on.” Harley groaned, burying his face in the pillow he had been using to swat at me, “Why are all of the people I live with so sappy?”

              “brother! mama! loulou!” Hiro skidded to a stop beside Willoughby, “hmmm? is something wrong? the great papyrus summoned us for dinner!”

              “UhHhH…” Willoughby mechanically began to walk away, “hE..hE jUsT sAiD tHaT…hE…”

              “what?” Hiro’s brows furrowed.

              “Nothing bro.” Harley got up, “Help me get Mom up though.”

              “okay!”


	30. Fin

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I own nothing. Full disclaimer/ links can be found in Ch1
> 
> Soo couple of things:  
> One, hats off to MelicMusicMagic who has been very helpful in pointing out spelling/grammatical/wtf errors in the story. Thank you so much! :)
> 
> Two, yes this chapter is shorter than the rest (by 2 pages), but I honestly got to the end and went..."I don't need to add more to this. There's no point" Anything else I would've added would've just been bland fluff that did nothing beyond pad out the chapter, so I said screw that.
> 
> and the garbled, random rest of it is: Yay I'm 18 now. Holy shit I'm fucking tired. I'm going to bed. I'll fix any errors you point out when I wake back up Melic (i don't know if that's an appropriate nickname, so I'm sorry if it bugs you, but it feels weird typing your name all out again twice...and I'm two more minutes away from passing out. So sorry if it bugs you XP plz don't kill me *kiss is beginning to really feel the effects of powerhousing 5 chapters in one day*) Fuck my brain is fried. I'm just going to crawl into a cover cocoon and sleep for six to seven hours. See you guys when I wake back up! :D

              “you look so pretty mama!” Hiro bounced up and down on my bed.

              “Thanks sweetie.” I double checked to make sure that I had my lip gloss in my purse, “Are you going to go watch the fireworks with Papyrus?”

              “yeah!” Hiro’s pupils turned into stars, “sans is going to take some of us to go see them, but harley, willoughby, and lace are going to stay behind with sunshine, raze, cyan, atlantic, and waltzer since cyan and atlantic don’t like loud noises.”

              “I see. Sissy will be staying home with Greyson then?”

              “mhm.” Hiro nodded.

              “I take it you plan on dragging Snooze along?” I teased.

              “he’s agreed to come willingly!” Hiro beamed, “it just took a lot of asking.”

              _More than a lot. Snooze practically lost his mind with how many times you were asking and confirming for the past few days._

              “I hope you boys have fun.” I picked him up and covered him in kisses, “Make sure to stay close to Sans and Papyrus though!”

              “i won’t get lost!” Hiro swore to me.

              “Good.” I nodded.

              In the living room, Papyrus seemed to be unable to decide if he wanted to wear his parka or one of the hoodies Sans bought him for Christmas.

              “It’s not too cold Papyrus.” Harley swung his feet back and forth lazily, “Maybe just go with the hoodie?”

              “BUT WILL THAT MAKE ME LOOK LAZY?” Papyrus frowned at the garment almost like it offended him.

              “mimi’s cici wears one all the time, and she’s not lazy.” Snooze pointed out.

              “TRUE….” Papyrus turned to me, “LIVI? WHAT DO YOU THINK?”

              “I think either would be fine Papyrus.” I shrugged, “I’d wear a nice, thick under shirt if you wore the hoodie though. It’s supposed to get really cold later on.”

              “HMMM….I’LL JUST WEAR THE PARKA.” Papyrus folded the hoodie up and placed it on the coffee table.           

              “Your choice man.” Harley shrugged. He looked at me, “You ready for your date with Asgore?”

              “Yeah. Just waiting on him to come pick me up.” I tugged at some of my hair nervously. _Come on Olivia! This isn’t your first date with him!_ It was going to technically be our first day of the new year though…. _BRAIN STOP!_

              “hAvE fUn.” Willoughby waved at me to lean down. He kissed my cheek, “StAy SaFe.”

              “I will. Make sure to tell Cyan and Sunshine I said ‘hi’.” I tickled Willoughby under his chin. My poppy laughed and nudged my hand away. I leaned down and whispered, “You and Harley doing okay?” Willoughby blushed deep violet and nodded, “Good.” I patted the top of his head.

              “mimi.” Snooze yawned.

              “Yup?” I looked at him. He kissed my cheek, “Aw, thank you.”

              “stay safe.” He nuzzled his head against my cheek.

              “I will. Besides, I’ll have Asgore with me.” I reminded all of them.

              “Even the strongest monster can be brought to his knees.” Harley retorted, “So play it safe.”

              “Alright. Alright.” I held my hands up before they could all join in and add to the worry brewing among them already, “We’ll both be very safe tonight okay? Cross my heart!”

              My bitties didn’t seem to quite believe me, but someone knocked on our door. Thus, any further henpecking was cut off. I peeked outside using the peephole and grinned like a madwoman when I saw it was my date for the evening.

              “I’m gone guys.” I told my bitties with a simple wave, “I’ll see you later!”

              They all chorused good-bye and ordered me to stay safe.

              _They’re so precious…_ I thought fondly as I stepped outside.

              “Hello handsome.” I winked at Asgore, “It’s good to see you.”

              “It’s good to see you as well.” Asgore offered me his arm, “I’m sorry that I haven’t had the time to sit down and talk with you properly over the past few days.”

              “Asgore.” I tugged on some of his forearm fur, “You just said that you didn’t have the time. You can’t help it if you become really busy!”

              “I still feel bad.” Asgore admitted.

              “Don’t.” I stood up on my tip toes and kissed his cheek, “You already bring a lot of happiness into my life, so there’s no need to apologize because I can’t completely monopolize your time.”

              “I know.” Asgore looked up at the changing sky, “I know.” He patted my hand.

              We walked to the restaurant we had reservations at talking about little and big things alike.

              Gaster and Granny were reluctantly getting along. Asgore seemed overjoyed that someone was willing to help his friend and ask for nothing in return. Granny just seemed happy to have someone else in the house really.

              At that point, the little experiment Sans and Sissy had going on was still going smoothly at its snail’s pace. The two weren’t exactly eager to rush things. I mean, they had Greyson to worry about already, and both were aware of just how risky what they were doing was. Thus, they were a bit on edge about the whole thing really.

              We also ended up talking about how Toriel was adjusting to her life in Harrisburg at a steady pace, and Dr. Alphys had apparently worked up the courage- after being prompted to by Mew- to confess to Undyne. Their new relationship had stumbled once or twice in the beginning. They were working on it though.

              “So much has changed.” I mused, letting Asgore help me up the slippery steps to the restaurant.

              “Isn’t that a good thing?” Asgore held the door open for me. I was glad to get out of the slight winter chill.

              “It is.” I nodded, “It’s just unexpected.”

              “As change always is.” Asgore murmured to me before turning his attention to the obviously fake staff member who approached us, “Hello, I have a reservation for two?”

              “Under what name?” The woman’s smile was sharp.

              “Dreemurr. Asgore Dreemurr.” Asgore must have decided to ignore her animosity.

              “Oh really…hmmm….Well look at that, one of my staff members actually let a monster get his name in my reservations list…damn…” She grumbled before plastering on her fake smile once more, “Well, it would be rude to just kick you out. Come on.”

              “If you’ve got a problem with him being a monster-“ Asgore held up a paw to quiet me down some, “Asgore…” I protested.

              “The ignorant will always be ignorant unless they decide to seek out information. She’ll come around one of these days or not at all.” Asgore shrugged. Then he dropped his voice low and whispered, “But I don’t really think the monster cause needs a woman as nasty as she is anyways.”

              “Asgo!” I laughed despite the anger burning in my chest.

              Despite the initial bitch’s rudeness, the rest of our dinner went by smoothly. No one gave us problems or looked down on us, and I was glad that people didn’t crowd our table just because…well… _King Asgore_ was sitting there.

              “Some of your fans are definitely here.” I watched more than a few women try and take stealthy pictures of us. _I can already smell the gossip columns.._ The knowledge that everyone would officially know that I was involved with him didn’t really bother me that much. Honestly, some ‘news’ stations had been speculating about it back when we first started walking like a couple, so I already knew what to expect- kind of, “Well…I hope you’re okay with being plastered all over the internet.”

              “I’ve apparently already created some ‘memes’ without meaning too.” Asgore shrugged, “I’m used to it at this point.”

              “Guess a king would be used to people scrutinizing everything he does….You okay with monsters not being happy about you dating a human?” I had already seen one or two of the speculation articles that blasted the king for daring to cross ‘such important boundaries without a care in the world’.

              “I’ve already had more than one “concerned mother” approach me about it.” Asgore swallowed another bite of his food, “I politely told her that merely tolerating one another was no way for humans and monsters to live. There shouldn’t be boundaries between us, and I just happened to fall for a human and crossed that “boundary” without a second thought or regret.” Asgore smiled at me, “So, I doubt I will mind all that much.”

              “Good.” I blushed, biting my lip. A little bit of the anxiety that had built up in the recesses of my chest uncoiled.

              “Did it worry you that much?” Asgore reached out and placed a calm paw on top of my hand “You don’t need to stress out over what other people think. The only opinion I care about when it comes to our relationship is yours.”

              “Really?” I blinked up at him.

              “Really.” He nodded.

              _Could my year ever really get any better past this point?_

I went to the bathroom after leaving some cash to pay for the bill to fix my make-up. Sissy and Nadia had both texted me, but I only responded to Sissy’s because Nadia had mentioned she was going into a late meeting.

              **Olivia:** Srry for the late reply! I’m doin good! The date’s goin well

 **Sissy <3: **That’s good to hear. Will you be going to see the fireworks?

 **Olivia:** Maybe. Havn’t talked to Asgore about it yet.

 **Sissyy <3: **Stay safe if you go. Don’t pick a remote location to watch them from. Muggers like to come out tonight.

              **Olivia:** Okay.

              **Sissyy <3: **I mean it Livvy.

              **Olivia:** Sissy…

              **Olivia:** You do realize I live in GR too right? :3 I kno what dangers there are.

              **Sissy <3: **Just keep me posted you little ulcer.

              **Olivia:** I love you!

              **Sissy <3: **Love you too baby boo.

              “Hey you.”

              Two human women sneered at me as they entered the bathroom. I didn’t say a single word.

              “Hey!” The larger of the two snapped.

              “Hmm? Are you talking to me? My name isn’t ‘You’, so I was a little confused.” I laughed, “Did you need something?”

              “Are you really here with that fucking goat thing?”

              “Yup.” I popped the ‘p’, “I’m doing him too.”

              That made both of them turn a rather sickly looking reddish purple color.

              “How could you do thi-“ The shorter one stepped forward, trying to intimidate me, but I was Josephine Newmore’s little sister. These little bitches had nothing on her.

              “Who I chose to date is absolutely none of your business.” I had on my sunniest smile, “Asgore means a lot to me, and I won’t let the opinions of some idiots like you bum me out or ruin my evening. Now, I’m willing to let you go because I don’t want to get blood on my dress.” I leaned forward towards the shorter woman, “So _move._ ”

              The two parted to give me space to exit the bathroom immediately.

              _I wonder if this is what Sissy feels like whenever she intimidates someone into backing off…_

              The logical part of my brain realized that encounters like that would probably become my norm due to my new relationship. The emotional part of my brain rebelled at the idea of someone I loved so dearly being treated like shit because I was dating him, but the calm part of my mind just went ‘He won’t let it get to him you idiot’.

              _Asgore and I won’t break-up over ridiculous things like this. If people want to be stupid, they can be stupid. They’ll learn someday._

              “Olivia?” Asgore noticed my shift in mood, “Did something happen?”

              “Nothing serious baby.” I kissed his cheek, “Did you get the bill paid?”

              “I did.” Asgore looked like he didn’t believe me, but he didn’t press the issue.

              “Where to next then? The fireworks?” I cocked my head.

              “I was planning on a more private situation.” Asgore stood up and wrapped an arm around me, “it’s apparently gotten colder since we came in here.”

              “I’m down for anything.” I sent a sultry, flirty smile his way, “Just lead the way your majesty.”

              And like magic, I walked with my boyfriend towards a new life that would be full of twists, turns, and surprises. It wouldn’t always be easy. It wouldn’t always be hard though.

              In the end, it would be my own little hard earned happy ending, and that would be more than enough.


End file.
